


Satum Novum

by bgn846



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fisherman Gladio, Fluff, Gladnis, Hurt/Comfort, I've been informed it may actually be slow burn, Ignis whump, Kidnapping, M/M, Minor Character Death, Noctis Whump, its not slow burn, maybe medium burn, other stuff but I can't think of it right now, stowaway Prompto
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-22
Updated: 2019-10-22
Packaged: 2020-05-16 06:10:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 36,857
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19312237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bgn846/pseuds/bgn846
Summary: Noctis gets kidnapped and Ignis is lost at sea after he tries to thwart the plot. Now as he struggles to save himself and locate the missing prince, he stumbles upon the last person he ever expected to find.  Gladiolus Amicitia, the shield that decided to become a fisherman instead.   Will he make it in time to rescue Noctis or has he failed his one and only friend?





	1. High Seas

**Author's Note:**

> Had this one scene in my head and had to write it. Now I've create an multi-chaptered AU for it to fit in. I am a nerd, save me! o-o 
> 
> This thing makes sense to me if you all have any questions let me know!! I love talking about my crazy ideas. I hope you enjoy. :)
> 
> Squeeee i'm so excited by this new development [ Pnutbutterghostess ](https://twitter.com/pnutbutterart) drew [ this wonderful piece of art](https://twitter.com/pnutbutterart/status/1183976645096439809) of Ignis and Gladio together.

The idea of death had crossed his mind several times.  The odds of being rescued were extremely rare and his body couldn’t hold out much longer.  Ignis wasn’t sure what was worse, the idea of traitors in the royal ranks or his princes questionable safety.  Not that it mattered he was going to die soon and no one would ever know what had really happened. 

Treading water was an interesting thing.  A human could do this action for a couple days at most, but that was under certain circumstances.  Ignis had been in the water now for about eighteen hours.  Things flittered through his mind in uncoordinated bundles.  He had been grateful at first that the water temperature had been warm.  It saved him from catching hypothermia right away, though he was shivering now as he’d been in for far too long.   

However, his traitorous brain would then tell him this was merely prolonging his death.  Dying slowly was agonizing.  He knew he would run out of energy and sink beneath the waves to eventually drown.  With no water and nothing to drink he was pushing it already. 

The items on his person that were waterproof, his watch and phone weren’t much use.  His phone had run out of battery and was out of range anyway.  His watch only served to remind him of the countdown to his demise. 

Continuing to stay upright he focused on breathing.  Why was he even bothering, he was a dead man playing with time.  Then he saw it, a ship in the distance.  Despite the fact that Ignis knew they couldn’t see him, he still screamed at the top of his lungs.  Waiting for the ship to steer his direction was excruciating.   What if they went the other way?  He would watch his one and only chance at savior sail away that would be heartbreaking.    

Several times it appeared the ship was turning away and he nearly cried.  Then against all odds it got closer and closer.  He waved his hands and yelled hoping someone would see or hear him.  The moment when a tall dark haired man waved back and pointed to him was overwhelming.  The rush of relief at being spotted made Ignis temporarily stop moving.  Sinking beneath the surface he struggled to get his head above water once more.  His body was reaching its limits.

The dark haired man was shouting directions to his crew as they navigated the craft closer to Ignis.  It was a fairly good sized fishing charter boat, big enough that there was no way to board without a ladder.      

He kept sinking beneath the surface due to the shock of being rescued.  Someone shouted something, a warning, and then a life ring was thrown out for him.  Swimming to the floating ring was a challenge.  Ignis swallowed sea water as he attempted to stay afloat.  Finally he was able to grasp it and he could mercifully rest his legs and arms. 

As the dark hair man pulled him closer, Ignis noticed another crew member with a new rope.  It had a harness attached.  Once he was next to the hull, the second rope was lowered with instructions for looping his arms and upper body into the harness.  He complied and then he began to feel himself being lifted.  Focusing on holding on tight he closed his eyes.  Part of his brain was unable to come to terms with the fact that he was being rescued.  It was so surreal, in a panic he opened his eyes to check it was still happening. 

That’s when he saw his rescuer up close.  The tall dark haired man was holding onto his arm and hauling him over the railing.  He had long hair that was pulled back away from his face, and he was talking to him.  Ignis could barely process anything, he was dimly aware of hands removing the harness and being laid down. 

“Hey buddy stay with me.” A voice urged.  “What’s your name?” The man tried again. 

“I—Ignis.” He managed to croak.  His voice was raw from yelling and lack of water to drink. 

“How long were you out here?” The man asked. 

“More than a day.” Ignis rasped.  “He desperately wanted something to drink, but wasn’t sure he’d pass out before he was able to ask.    

“Shit!” The man exclaimed. “Prompto go fetch me water now!  Hey stay with me for a little bit longer.  You need to drink something and then I’ll take you below deck and get you dried off.”

This Prompto returned with the water, but that meant he had to sit up.  His body was done moving and was on strike.   His rescuer figured this out pretty fast and helped lever Ignis up into sitting position.  Making a move to take the bottle almost worked, Ignis was tired and uncoordinated so he faltered.  The dark haired man gave up after a second and brought the bottle to Ignis’ lips. 

Normally this type of action would have not been tolerated by Ignis but he needed water.  It may have been a blessing he wasn’t holding it.  The man slowly tipped the water back and Ignis knew he would have tried to gulp the whole thing down in heartbeat.

“I’m not feeling so great.” Ignis mumbled.  “I’m cold.”

“Working on that next buddy, I’m going to carry you so don’t freak out.”

The next few minutes were odd indeed.  Ignis’ world tilted as this man picked him up off the deck.  Then a blur of dark and light spaces proceeded to pass him by.  Finally they stopped and he was being put down on the floor again. 

“Prompto!  Kiddo where are you?  I need those towels.”  The man yelled. 

The blond haired youth named Prompto appeared with an armful of towels.  He quickly came into the room and waited for more instruction. 

“Hey Ignis.” The man spoke.  “I need to get you out of your wet clothes and dried off.  Are you okay with me doing that?” 

Ignis managed a nod and tried fumbling with the buttons of his own shirt.  His fingers were numb, astrals this was bad.  The stranger got his buttons undone fast and tugged Ignis up into sitting position to remove the shirt. 

“Prompto help me, make sure he stays upright.”

Ignis felt the blond haired man grasp his shoulders and hold him firmly.  It helped tremendously otherwise he would have fallen to the side ages ago.  His shirt was taken off and then his undershirt was pulled over his head. 

Next came his shoes and trousers. Ignis chose to ignore the last shred of his dignity being stripped away, as his boxers were taken off.  He knew it was necessary and honestly it felt so much better to not have any wet clothing sticking to his skin. 

The stranger spared him complete humiliation by quickly throwing a towel over his midsection once he was fully disrobed. 

“You’ve got hair drying duty I’ll get his legs.” The man said as he handed a towel to Prompto. 

Ignis zoned out, despite being out of the water and getting dry he was still shivering violently.  “Do --do you have a blanket?” He asked hoping they would wrap him up soon. 

“I’ve got a bunk right here with a pile of blankets on it just for you.  Give me a sec.”

As promised a moment later the dark haired man bodily lifted him again and placed him in a bunk a few feet away.   Ignis sighed loudly in contentedness as the covers were pulled up around his body.  He might survive this ordeal yet. 

“Try and relax, you’re safe, you can rest.” The stranger urged. 

That was all Ignis needed to hear and he passed out. 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“Uh Gladio – come take a look at this.” Prompto announced as he held Ignis’ clothes while they both stood in the common area.

“What is it Blondie?  Upset because he dresses better than you?”

“Hey!  I like my style.” Prompto huffed. “Stop distracting me, this could be important.  Take a look at the label in his shirt; it says it came from the ‘crown tailors’.  Does that mean _the_ crown?” He stressed.

Gladio trudged over finally and took a peek.  Sure enough the label inside read as Prompto had described it.  “Have you heard any chatter over the radio about any boating accidents?”

“Nothing, which is really weird right?” The younger man pondered.  “Unless it was on a secret mission and the boat sank and Ignis is the only survivor.”

Staring at the blond Gladio sighed heavily.  “You and your imagination.  If there had been other people don’t you think Ignis would have said something about looking for other survivors?” 

“Not if he is sworn to secrecy and the mission failed.” 

Rubbing his face with his hands Gladio chose to walk away and rummage through the food stores.  “I’m going to go sit with him in case he wakes up again.  I’m worried he didn’t drink enough water before he passed out.  You gonna keep my boat float?”

“Okay you have trained me really well on that part; I promise I won’t let anything too terrible happen.”  Prompto swore as he crossed his heart with his fingers. 

Pursing his lips together Gladio shook his head.  “I’m not sure whether to be happy that you know your limitations or worried that you know your limitations.”

“Oh go I’ll be fine.  I know where you are and I can use the P.A.  if I need to.”

“Fine.” Gladio huffed as he grabbed some apples and water.  Smiling at Prompto he turned and left the common area. His blond friend was an odd ball for sure.  Poor guy had been chased down by a bunch of local thugs one night, and he’d sought solace on Gladio’s fishing boat.   Why on Eos he’d been trailing around the run down port of east Niflheim was beyond him. 

Gladio had finished his business and put out to sea without even realizing the plucky kid had gotten stuck in his bait hold.  He remembered getting the fright of his life when he went to check the bait stocks.   All he saw was a shock of blond hair and a skinny arm reaching out to grab him.

That was almost two years ago and no matter how hard he tried the guy wouldn’t leave.  Not that he minded so much, it was nice to have company when he was in between fishing seasons and down a full crew. 

Approaching his cabin he pushed the door open slowly and walked in.  Ignis was still unconscious but thankfully he’d stopped shivering.  He’d only left him for about ten minutes and he looked so much better already.  Gladio figured he’d wait another hour and then try and wake Ignis up to drink something.  For now he setup his hammock and grabbed a book.   

 

 

* * *

 

 

Panic gripped the advisor as he awoke.  Where was he? What had happened to Noct?  The gentle shaking of his shoulders stopped when he finally opened his eyes.  It was immediately evident that his face had betrayed his fears. 

“Whoa Ignis don’t freak out, you’re still safe.  I picked you up in the open sea about two hours ago.  Remember?” His rescuer asked.

The memories of his hellish adventure came flooding back.  The royal vessel and the traitors that had so cruelly shoved him overboard, he could only pray that Noct was unharmed.  He needed to find his prince before it was too late.  “I need to go.” He uttered quickly. 

“I figured you’d say something like when you woke up. I’ve already charted a course back to the main land.”

“Where?”

“A fairly decent sized port near Altissia.  I can radio ahead if you need to deliver a message of any kind.” 

“No!” Ignis hissed that was the last thing he needed.  He had no idea how many other kingsglaive had been turned.  

The stranger held up his hands in a peaceful gesture. “Don’t stress, I won’t do anything until you’re ready.”

The response calmed Ignis somewhat.  At least he didn’t have to fight with this man over things of that nature.  “What do I call you?” Ignis asked suddenly when he realized he had no name for his savior.

“The names Gladiolus Amicitia, but you can call me Gladio.” He smiled.   

Ignis blinked stupidly at Gladio.  Blaming his exhaustion for being unable to think clearly he tried to find out more information.  “Who’s your father?” He asked weakly. 

Gladio narrowed his eyes.  “I’ll play fifty questions with you but you need to drink some water first.”

Oh.

The thought of water was so pleasant it nearly distracted him completely.  Working an arm out from the covers he reached out to take the bottle.  Gladio carefully helped him sit up so he could drink.   After the bottle was drained Ignis became aware of his state of undress.  He opened his mouth to speak again but Gladio cut him off.

“I’ve got some spare clothes for you if you’re able?”

Nodding quickly earned him a lap of comfortable looking garments.  Gladio remained by his side as he pulled the worn but very soft t-shirt over his head.  It was good that Gladio was nearby, as he almost toppled sideways out of the bed, when the shirt was over his head.   He could add lack of balance to his list of problems. 

Laying back down Ignis took the sweatpants and managed to don them while staying under the covers.  He sighed heavily after the task was complete.  “Thank you.” He mumbled, sleep was threatening to take him again. 

“Let me cut you up an apple before you pass out again.” Gladio added as he patted Ignis’ shoulder.

Watching as the dark haired man pulled a chair over to sit beside him, Ignis worked to remain awake.   He focused on Gladio cutting the apple and watched his fingers work the blade around the fruit. 

“Here.” He offered as he held out a small slice. 

Ignis accepted and munched slowly, astrals he was hungry.   Accepting each slice gratefully he was starting to relax slightly. 

“So my father is Clarus Amicitia, the King’s shield.  However, I have a feeling you already knew that.”

“Did my phone make it?” Ignis asked suddenly. 

“Huh? A yeah it did actually.  Prompto’s charging it now.  Fancy with technology these days eh, making water resistant phones and all.”

“I must get to shore quickly.” Ignis reiterated. 

“Don’t worry I’m working on it trust me.” 

“When was the last time you saw your father?” Ignis asked as he bounced back to the topic at hand.

Gladio rubbed at the back of neck.  “I dunno exactly but it’s been a while.  After my mom died, when I was young, I went to live with an Aunt.  My younger sister and I spent our youth visiting dad on the weekends.  That got to be hard with his work schedule so we stopped going after a while.”

“I’m sorry to hear it.” Ignis offered. 

“I have good memories, which helps, but it was still sad not being with him all the time.”

“May I ask why you haven’t taken up the family profession?”

Gladio scoffed.  “I’ve trained for it, believe me.”

Ignis knew this was true simply based off of Gladio’s actions to date.  He’d been picked up twice already by the man, and he could see his muscled physique plain as day. “What happened then?” 

“I didn’t want to get sucked into a life that wasn’t my own.  I grew up never seeing my dad and it was because of his job.  I didn’t want to do that to my sister.”

“But aren’t you out on this boat a lot?” Ignis asked unable to stop himself.

“Yeah – you got a point there, but I do spend the off season at home with Iris, my sister, and she tags along sometimes.  Titan’s ass, listen to me rattle on about shit you don’t care about.  Sorry.” Gladio admitted.   

“I don’t mind, it’s nice to hear actually.” Ignis had been curious about Clarus’ home life or lack thereof.  He’d known the man had children but he’d never met them.  Sighing he decided he might have to divulge more information about his situation.  He had a feeling he might need the services of a runaway shield.

“So what about you? How’d you end up floating in the middle of the sea?” Gladio asked with a concerned look.  “You don’t have to answer that yet, I really should let you rest.  You look wicked tired.” 

It was true Ignis was struggling to stay awake, but he did feel it might be beneficial to share some of his story.  “It’s alright, you deserve to know more.” He added right before he yawned widely. 

“You need to sleep, it can wait.” 

“Mmm sleep does sound wonderful, but I must tell you some part of my story in case it proves useful.” Ignis could see the look of confusion cross Gladio’s face.  “My full name is Ignis Scientia and I’m the royal advisor to his highness Prince Noctis.”

Gladio appeared dumbstruck.  “I would hear my father mention someone by the name of Scientia when I was younger.  The prince’s future advisor and babysitter, if I recall.”

Ignis smiled at that remark.  “Ah yes I do still hear that occasionally.”  The thought of caring for his prince did reignite his worry.  “I was accompanying the prince on a special fishing trip when I discovered there were traitors in our midst.  I was unable to act fast enough and they literally shoved me overboard in the dead of night.”

“Damn!  That’s shitty.  The astrals must want you to save him since you got rescued.   Honestly, I wasn’t even meant to be where I was when I found you.  I’d gotten off course and was about to correct it when I saw you waving.” 

That information caught Ignis off guard.  He wasn’t expecting to be told of his near doom.  “Oh – that is – uh.” The advisor couldn’t figure out what to say.  Being reminded that he had nearly died was doing funny things to his brain.  The feeling of tears pricking at his eyes surprised him.  Taking a deep breath Ignis worked to calm down.  He’d been saved and that’s what mattered. 

“Oh sorry I didn’t mean to upset you.  Try not to focus on the ‘what if’s’ you’re safe now.”  Gladio announced kindly. 

“Can I ask that you keep this information quiet for now?  I’m not sure who I can trust.”  Ignis asked seriously.

“Sure thing, you’re lucky my dad likes you otherwise we might have a problem.”

“Huh?” Now it was Ignis’ turn to be confused.  “I thought you didn’t talk much anymore?”

“Yeah well you’ve been in service to the crown for a long time, and I do remember my dad talking about you.  Nothing personal just that he thought you were a good influence on the prince.  I’ll have to take your word that you’re not one of the traitors.” 

“I would die for highness; I can assure you I’m one of the good guys.” 

“Well you almost did die for your prince already, so hopefully you won’t have to do it again.” Gladio added.  “Now rest, I’ve chewed your ear off for far too long.”

Ignis hummed his approval and closed his eyes.  He could feel the blanket being pulled up to cover his shoulders.  Shoving his thoughts aside he tumbled into sleep once more.  

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“What do you mean he’s disappeared?” Noct yelled. “People don’t disappear on a fucking boat!”

“Highness watch your language.” Drautos hissed. 

“I will do no such thing, my friend is missing and we need to figure out what happened!”

“You must consider the possibility that he slipped and fell overboard last night.”  Lazarus offered with a sneer.  “It’s hard to see at night and the seas were choppy.” 

“Ignis is smart he wouldn’t have fallen overboard.  We need to turn around and backtrack; we need to find him before he drowns!” Noct added frantically.    

“I’ve put out a distress call just in case there are any other boats in the area.  They will keep an eye out.” Drautos added with little sympathy. 

“No this is unacceptable.  We are turning around now!  That’s an order!” Noct huffed crossing his arms and frowning. 

Drautos looked irritated and he looked to Lazarus with a glare.  “Of course highness.  Lazarus go tell the captain to get this boat turned around.”

Lazarus left quickly and then it happened.  Noct watched in horror as Drautos suddenly morphed into a full suite of magical armor.   The ensuing battle was far from fair.  Sure, he could use his magic to defend himself but it wasn’t working real well.  Fighting on a boat was hazardous.  One wrong move and the boat would sink essentially dooming them all.  The turning point had been when Drautos had threatened just that. 

He had forced the battle down to the cabins below and was ready to open a hole in the bottom of the vessel.  Noct was livid he’d been duped by the very captain of the guard.  A small hope flickered in him that Lazarus had made a distress call.   That idea was squashed when he saw the glaive coming to join them. 

“Put it on him.” Drautos ordered. 

Before Noct could ask, Lazarus was standing beside him holding a metal collar.    “I’m not wearing that fucking thing!” he sputtered. 

“You don’t have a choice.  Put it on or I’ll sink the boat.” Drautos growled. 

After an intense stare down Noct finally took the offending item from Lazarus and fastened it on his neck.  The device blocked his use of magic. 

“If you try and remove it, it will electrocute you.” 

The prince wished it was full of explosives instead.  He would have considered trying to remove it with them all on the boat.   He would at least be taking down two traitors.  His advisor was most likely dead and things were looking grim.  “Why?” he asked curtly. 

“Nothing personal highness, I want money plain and simple.  Lazarus, lock him in his cabin would you.” Drautos ordered. 

Once inside his room Noct sat down and tried not to cry.  This was so bad.  He needed to figure out how to send a distress call.  Reaching for his phone revealed no signal.  He’d need to get to the bridge above to use the radio.  Without his magic that was going to be a hard task. 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

The Eos was a boring place these days.  There had been no major wars in the last three hundred years, and no one died from the scourge anymore.  The history books were full of tales of the black death but the malady had been banished half a millennia ago. Even the daemons that roamed the lands were gone.  Monsters still lurked here and there but they were manageable.

Some ancient Lucis Caelum had come back to life and saved them all.   Or at least that’s how the story was told.  No one knew exactly what had happened, merely that the current Lucis Caelums were tasked with protecting the crystal that gave life to their Eos.  He used its very magic to fight with and it felt brilliant.  What a waste to have such power and not use it for domination.  

However, the soldier wasn’t stupid and he knew a rebellion of that nature would never work.  The Eos liked being at peace.  The idea had come to him to operate on a slightly smaller scale.   Every large city across the Eos had a darker side.

Organized crime.

Once he’d completed this mission and gotten his ransom money he was going to relocate to Niflheim and open up shop as it were.  He had power, and he would have money to go with it soon.  He’d instructed Lazarus to plot a course to angelgard.   The time had come to make his move. 


	2. Distraction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ignis works to find the whereabouts of the prince, but he runs into trouble.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More whump! Yeah! I can't help myself sometimes. I hope you all enjoy. :)

The sound of seagulls woke Ignis, he was warm, and finally felt rested.  A second later his brain kicked into gear, figuring out what hearing birds really meant, he was near the shore.  They had arrived in Altissia.

In what Ignis would later classify as a stupid move, he attempted to bolt out of bed.  A number of things happened as a result.  Gravity was a greater force than he’d remembered, and his sweatpants weren’t as snug as they should have been.   The advisor was not allowed to suffer alone, as Gladio had been reading in his hammock.  The dark haired man had witnessed him waking, and was thankfully ready to catch Ignis, preventing him from falling to the floor on wobbly legs.  

The feeling of a strong tattooed arm around his waist, made Ignis’ breath catch.  Gladio was silent as he held him upright, his hold never loosening.  Ignis quickly grasped his pants, effectively keeping them from slinking down his hips.  After a minute the shake in his limbs had gone and Ignis focused on standing up straight. 

“I know you’re in a hurry, but you gotta give your body time to adjust.  You’ve been without proper food and rest for over two days.  That has an effect.” Gladio chided.     

“I do realize that, but I have to deal with more pressing matters than my health.”

“Sure, but you keeling over prematurely isn’t gonna help the prince.”   

Ignis sighed.  “What do you suggest I do?” He lamented. 

“Move a little slower until you get your strength back.  Accept some help.”  Gladio offered. 

That statement made Ignis think.  This man had saved his life, surely there had to be a way to repay him? “How shall I repay you for your kindness?  I do owe you my life.” 

“You don’t owe me anything; just don’t throw away what you almost lost.”

Ignis was silent, Gladio was correct, he couldn’t waste this opportunity.  He needed to be smart about his next move.  “Did my clothing make it?” He queried hopefully.

Gladio nodded and finally released him.   Ignis watched as the tall man strode across the cabin, and retrieved a stack of clothes.   “They are clean; I’ll be up on the bridge when you’re ready to go.”  He announced handing off the bundle to Ignis.

The advisor found he was staring as Gladio turned and left the cabin.  He wished they’d met under different circumstances, Ignis was intrigued by Gladio.  However, now was not the right time to be exploring new friendships.  He needed to find Noct.  Thankfully his legs had decided to work properly, and after a few minutes he had freshened up and was ready to go.

Fifteen minutes later found Ignis in the middle of a rather odd discussion.  Gladio and Prompto were both arguing, about letting him go alone.  It appeared that the blond felt he would need their help, and wanted to tag along.  Gladio on the other hand didn’t want to interfere.  Ignis was slightly disheartened by Gladio’s opinion.  Despite the fact, that he knew full well, he would decline the help.  Ignis didn’t want to get either of them involved, unless it was utterly necessary.   

Finally, the only way Prompto would let the matter go, was if Ignis promised to check in with them later.  Phone numbers were exchanged and Ignis was finally able to say goodbye. 

Walking down the ramp at the dock felt odd, almost sad even.  The advisor worked to push his feelings aside, he had work to do.  He needed to find a secure line of communication to contact the king, and see if Drautos had made any demands.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“Why didn’t you want to go?!” Prompto huffed.  “Someone tried to kill him and you let him go off on his own.  That’s not fair Gladio.”

“Kid, He works for the crown and I don’t want to get involved okay.  He wanted to go by himself anyway, so no matter what you said would have changed his mind.”

“Still, it sucks!  I wanted to help and you ruined it.”

Gladio scoffed.  “I didn’t ruin anything Prompto.  Ignis didn’t want us to come, get over it.” 

“What happens if he gets hurt or killed, won’t you feel bad?” The blond tried.

“Prompto, I’m done with this discussion.  I gotta go get more supplies for when we leave again.  Try not to worry.” Gladio offered as he left the bridge.  Telling his younger companion to calm down wasn’t helping his own nerves.  Admittedly Gladio was worried for what awaited Ignis in Altissia.  If he was dealing with traitors there was no telling how deep it went.

 

  

* * *

 

 

  

Noct’s timing was terrible.  He had managed to get the air vent loose in his cabin, and was currently stuck in the duct work.  Stupid action movies, they always had people crawling in air ducts.  Real life was different; the spaces were small and didn’t fit a body at all!    He barely heard the door to his room click open as his head and shoulders were wedged in the wall. 

Lazarus’ hearty laugh was what actually caught his attention.  Before he could kick out, two hands had roughly grabbed his waist and pulled him from the vent.  The glaive then slapped him roughly in the head after he was freed. 

“Good one highness.  Too bad Drautos has the remote to your collar; otherwise I woulda shocked your arse.”

Noct huffed and held the back of head where Lazarus had smacked him.  “I never did anything to wrong you, why can’t you let me go.”

“Doesn’t matter, your kind is what’s wrong with the Eos these days.  Too much power for your own good.  Now get up or I’ll make you.”

“I thought you said Drautos had the remote, so make me.” Noct retorted angrily.

“Fucking punk.” Lazarus spit out as he roughly grabbed Noct by his shirt.  “Get up.” 

Before Noct could put up a fight, the glaive had pulled him up and pinned him against the wall.   The next thing he felt were his hands being secured behind his back.  “Hey!  Don’t do that!  What if I fall overboard or you push me. I won’t be able to swim.” 

“Not my problem, now get moving.”

Noct was nervous again, he had no idea what they were planning.  If Ignis truly was dead then no one knew what had really happened.  The thought of his best friend not having survived made him start to panic.  Unable to stop his body from shaking he focused on breathing.  Lazarus shoved him upstairs to where Drautos was waiting. 

The captain of the guard looked over and smirked.  “Welcome to your new home highness, I do hope you like the great outdoors.” Drautos offered as he craned his neck towards dry land. 

“Where the hell are we?” Noct asked bewildered. 

“It doesn’t matter to you.  The message I’m aiming to send is for your father alone.  We are going onshore and if you so much as look at me wrong I’m going to hurt you.  Is that understood?” Drautos asked. 

Normally Noct would have had a flippant response for that kind of statement, but he was afraid.  “Does-does that mean you don’t intend to harm me?” He asked weakly. 

“If you do what you’re told, then the chances of your survival increase greatly.”

Noct stayed silent and concentrated on not falling in the water as they boarded the dingy.  Having his hands bound behind him was bad for balance, and he nearly went over the edge once.  He felt Drautos’ large hand grip his jacket and pull him back.  If the captain was willing to save him then maybe he wasn’t going to kill him. 

The boat ride was short and no one said anything as Lazarus steered towards shore.  Once the craft was beached, Drautos grabbed him and pointed in the direction to walk.

The rocky outcropping they all headed towards, seemed familiar to Noct but he couldn’t place it.  The view almost looked as if it came from some old engraving in the archives.  Where were they?  A small opening came into view and Drautos shoved him towards the chamber beyond. 

It was a tomb or an ancient chapel, Noct wasn’t sure, but he was immediately worried when he saw chains hanging from the ceiling. 

“String him up.” Drautos ordered once they’d all entered the small space. 

Noct worked hard to stay silent; he didn’t want to piss Drautos off.   He was shaking again as his body dealt with a new adrenaline rush.   This wasn’t going to be comfortable. 

Lazarus untied him and pushed Noct over to a chain.  The glaive secured his left wrist above his head with the chain, and then tugged him across the small space to secure his right wrist in a similar manner. However, the spacing was wrong and he couldn’t reach the other side. 

“Captain, it won’t reach. I gotta hold him up while you secure his other wrist.” Lazarus announced. 

Noct didn’t want that to happen, that would hurt a lot.  One could suffer permanent damage from being suspended like that.  He watched as Drautos stomped over, from where he’d been messing around with a radio.  The prince was worried; he didn’t know what the captain’s views on torture were.  This was surely some form of it.  Opting to stay silent Noct waited to see what Drautos would say. 

He stopped a few feet away and stared at the prince.  Noct managed to maintain eye contact as Drautos glared at him. Knowing the terrified look he had sprawled on his features was plain as day, Noct focused on breathing.

“Help me.” Lazarus tried again. “I’ll hold him or you can.  I can’t reach the other chain; his fucking arms are too short.”

“That’s too much work, there are empty supply boxes near the entrance, have him stand on one of those.” Drautos ordered.

Lazarus looked like he was about to complain but Drautos flashed the glaive an angry look.  Lazarus opened his mouth to speak but shut it a second later.  Noct could feel his knees going rubbery; the intensity of the situation was taking its toll. 

It only took a minute for Lazarus to come back with a wooden crate.  He threw it on the floor and ordered Noct up.  He didn’t fight back for fear of having the platform taken away.  Feeling truly helpless once his right wrist was secure, Noct stared at the floor.  He wasn’t comfortable but he knew it was better than hanging from the chains. 

The sound of an imitation shutter clicking caused him to look up.  “What did you just do?” He asked worriedly.

“Collecting proof highness, nothing you need to concern yourself with.”  Drautos answered as he pocketed his phone.  

“What happens next?” Noct asked as he pulled slightly on the chains, they were tight.

“Now you wait, highness.” Drautos offered. 

“What are we waiting for?”

“No, you alone are waiting.  We are leaving.   Hopefully your rescue party arrives before you die.”

“No one knows where I am, how is that even fair?!” Noct yelled in a panic.

“I’m merely testing the mettle of the crown, let’s see if they can crack the case of the missing prince.” 

“Please!  Don’t leave me here alone!”

The captain smirked and shook his head.  “You don’t have a say in the matter.  Try not to cry, you’ll need to retain as much water as you can.   Lazarus, grab the radio we’re leaving.” Drautos finished. 

Noct didn’t have a chance to add anything more, as the two older men briskly turned and left.  Now he was really scared, he was alone and had no idea how anyone would find him.

 

      

* * *

 

 

  

“Now for the setup.” Drautos announced once they were back on the boat.  “Pegasus to Sol, come in.” He barked into the handset of the encrypted radio. 

After a minute the radio crackled to life. “Sol here, report your status.” A voice answered.

“Code dark azul.” Drautos replied. 

The line went silent again, and another few minutes passed.  This time, the voice that came back was recognizable, it was Clarus.  “Status?”

“The prince has been kidnapped.”    

“Repeat that!” Clarus urged. 

“Prince Noctis has been kidnapped. We are in pursuit.”

“How?” Clarus asked worriedly.

“We were ambushed by fucking pirates, they outnumbered us and were able to take the prince.”

“Where is your location?  We will send reinforcements.”

“Unknown, the attack destroyed our navigation system.   As I stated we are in pursuit but we are losing ground.”

“Casualties?” Clarus asked gravely.

“One, unfortunately Scientia didn’t make it.”

The line stayed silent for a moment, Clarus finally came back noticeably distraught.  “Was there any other identifiable information on the attackers? Did you see any markings indicating were they were from?”

“None, it appeared they were a standalone operation.  Have you received any information on your end? Any ransom requests?” 

“Silent on our end. Do you know where your closest port is?” Clarus pondered.  “We can meet you there to regroup and plan a rescue.” 

“We were nearest to Altissia before the attack.  We won’t be able to follow the attackers much longer.  Once I lose sight I’ll figure out where we are and work on going to Altissia.” Drautos lied. 

“Men will be enroute shortly.  Keep me posted with updates.”

The radio went silent.  Drautos turned off the device, and steered the boat towards Altissia.  “Once we get close enough to pick up internet again, I’ll send and untraceable ransom request, with the pictures I took earlier.” 

‘Think they’ll find him in time?” Lazarus asked.

“They should, otherwise he’ll turn into another forgotten Lucis Caelum, lost to the realms of time.”

“Remind me to never get on your bad side.”

Drautos merely smirked at the younger man.   The captain had to be careful how he played things from now on.  He’d put something in motion that wasn’t easily stopped.

  

 

* * *

 

 

  

Ignis couldn’t shake the feeling that he was being followed.  He’d only gotten a few blocks from the dock and was in search of a safe house nearby.  The only way to ensure the information he was about to deliver wasn’t traced, was to use a secure line. 

Deciding to turn left suddenly into a small alleyway, Ignis waited to see if anyone would pass by. No one came, but he heard the scuff of a boot from behind.  Spinning around revealed a problem. 

“Scientia!  Hot damn, you made it out alive!”  Tredd Furia exclaimed. “We all figured you were a dead man, getting lost at sea like that.”

Ignis was thinking fast.  He needed to determine whether or not this glaive had turned or not.  He’d obviously been in communication with Drautos, or maybe not.  He had no way to tell where his information came from.  “The report you were given was mistaken.” He offered.

“Huh – well that’s good.  Where ya headed?”

“Top secret business I’m afraid, I must be on my way.” Ignis replied coolly.

“Right, no worries.” Tredd smiled.  “See ya around then.” He waved noncommittally and walked away in the opposite direction. 

Ignis waited until he was out of sight, around the corner, and went to return to his original path.   Then a noise caught his attention.  The faint crackling of what sounded like magic and a soft grunt.  He’d heard Noct make that noise when he warped. 

Turning around quickly, he saw Tredd warping directly at him with a dagger in his hand.  Ignis was barely able to throw his body out of the way, as the glaive attacked.  He’d trained with Noct before so he had some practice in dealing with an opponent that could warp.    Tredd clearly had intent to kill, so that was a tougher issue to handle. 

The advisor called his daggers from the armiger, except nothing appeared.  He was still defenseless, and Tredd wasn’t stopping to ask him about his lack of weaponry.  The full implication of what this meant finally hit Ignis.  Noct’s magic was gone.  That would only happen if he was dead. 

Ignis tried to clear his head to focus on the fight at hand, but he was ill prepared, and stuck on the idea that his prince could be dead.  Noctis had given Ignis access to his magic years ago, and the removal of such a connection meant Noct was surely dead. 

Tredd went to attack a second time and Ignis did the only thing he could, run.  When your opponent could warp this made things tricky.  The advisor felt as though he was playing a child’s game, as he dove left and right trying to avoid the glaive.   Things were looking grim as he continued to evade Tredd’s blade. 

The man came at him once again and Ignis tried to dodge the attack.  He didn’t make it, and he felt the tip of the glaives dagger connect with his side.  It was painful, the cut was deep, and he knew without proper treatment he might bleed out.    Clutching his side Ignis staggered sideways working to stay upright. 

As it stood though, he was going to get taken down by a six damned traitor.  What a way to go, he’d wasted his second chance brilliantly.  Tredd sneered and crouched down for a third attack.  However, he didn’t make it.  The man was about to spring forward when an empty beer bottle connected with his head. 

The shock of it caused the man to stumble sideways, but he didn’t go down.  “What the hell!” Tredd yelled as he turned towards the other end of the street, about fifteen meters away. 

No one was there. 

Then a whoosh of air passed Ignis and Gladio appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, tackling Tredd to the ground.  The glaive went down hard, and Gladio easily got him in a choke hold.  The following minutes were a blur of blue flashes, as Tredd warped to get away from Gladio’s grip.   Since they were touching Gladio went along the man each time he warped. 

The first warp seemed to disorient Gladio and he lost his grip briefly.  Tredd took this opportunity to try and stand.  However, Gladio quickly came back to his senses and spun them around, slamming Tredd into a nearby wall.  A terrible metallic scrapping noise erupted, causing Ignis to look around for the source.   The two men had hit the release mechanism for an escape ladder, attached to the back of the building, and it had moved slightly. 

Tredd continued to warp them around the small alleyway.  Gladio appeared to have gotten over the initial shock of being thrown around via magic.  Ignis watched as the larger man tightened his hold.  

The advisor knew that consecutive warps were exhausting, and at some point Tredd would have no choice but to stop.  Finally, the frantic moving ceased, and the pair was left writhing on the ground under the fire escape.

The sound of footsteps pounding tore Ignis’ attention away from the fight and he saw Prompto running over.

“Prompto you came too?” Ignis rasped as he winced holding his side.

“Yeah, of course.” He sputtered as he stared at Gladio and Tredd on the ground. 

Gladio maintained his grip, even when Tredd began tapping furiously on his arm.  The traitor passed out a minute later. 

“How?” Ignis asked weakly. 

“Later, we need to get back to the boat and get that treated.” Gladio huffed as he shoved Tredd aside, and rolled over to stand.  “You’re bleeding pretty bad we need to get moving.” Gladio urged in between heavy breaths.

“You both followed me?”

“Not exactly, I went out by myself to follow you, and blondie went out to follow me.  The difference being, he sucks at following people.  So we teamed up to save time.” Gladio offered as Prompto walked over. 

“Hey, I did really good hitting that guy in the head.  That was a long throw.”  Prompto exclaimed but he was suddenly distracted when he saw the blood on Ignis’ shirt.  “Shit, Ignis you need help.” 

“I fear it may not matter.” The advisor sighed.  “Noct’s dead.”

“Whoa you don’t know that for sure!” Gladio replied as he bent over to look at the open wound in Ignis’ side.  “You’re bleeding a lot we need to put pressure on it.”

Ignis watched speechlessly as Gladio took off his t-shirt and rolled it up.  Momentarily distracted by the wall of muscle, and giant tattoo in front of his face, Ignis wavered in place.  He realized a second later that two arms were being threaded around his waist.  Gladio was tying the shirt around his body to put pressure on the wound. 

“Come on we don’t have much time, we need to go.” Gladio insisted as he took Ignis’ left arm and slung it over his shoulder.  

Suddenly the fire escape mechanism squealed to life, and the ladder came crashing to the ground.  Prompto yelped and Ignis could feel Gladio suck in a breath.  The ladder had landed squarely on Tredd’s head. 

“Is he dead?” Prompto whispered as he stood frozen in place.

“Kiddo I urge you to look away and keep walking.” Gladio suggested seriously.  “We need to go now.” 

“But – he’s been hit in the head – should we do something.” The blond tried again.

“It was an accident.” Ignis added with a strained voice.  “We can’t help him.”  The advisor watched as Prompto struggled with his conscious.  The younger man seemed to come to terms with the situation, a few seconds later, and bolted from his spot running out into the street.

Gladio followed and Ignis started to protest when they turned away from the safe house.  He knew there were potions there, and he still needed to call the king.  Though it didn’t matter, Noct was gone.  Whimpering out loud at the thought, he tried to pull away.

“NO, we can’t go that way, the boat is the other direction.”

“The safe house.” Ignis lamented as he pointed with his free hand.

“The safe house isn’t safe anymore, if loser glaive is hanging around to kill you.”  The taller man cut in. 

Unable to put up any resistance, Ignis let Gladio drag him back to the boat.  Maybe he could throw himself overboard later, no one would notice.  He’d failed his prince. 

The walk back was a blur, his side throbbed in pain, and he couldn’t stop thinking about Noct.  Turning sideways to get back up the gang plank, Ignis asked helplessly.  “What are you doing?”

“Saving you again.” Gladio retorted as he went straight to the common area. 

Ignis was deposited on the table in the room, and Gladio forced him to lie down.   The feeling of lightheadedness was steadily taking over Ignis senses.   He’d lost a lot of blood and was feeling the effects.  The table wasn’t big enough to hold his entire body, so his legs hung off the edge past his knees. 

“Prompto go get that box I tell you to never touch.” Gladio ordered a moment later. 

All the advisor heard was a quiet yelp, and the sound of boots shuffling away.  “Don’t bother with me.”  He whispered.

“Will you shut it, you still gotta catch the bad guy who set this up!” 

That factoid registered with Ignis and he snapped his eyes open again.  When had he closed them?  Astrals he was tired.  Maybe not getting enough rest before he took off to save Noct was a bad idea.  Prompto finally returned clutching a wooden box like his life depended on it. 

“Bring it here kiddo, I need something out of it.”

Ignis watched as Gladio opened the box and removed a potion.  “How did you get that?” He asked in awe. 

“My dad gave me a bunch over the years.  He was always worried about me and my sister getting hurt.  So I keep some on board in case of near death situations.  Like this one.” He announced dryly.   The dark haired man didn’t wait for a response, as he took Ignis’ hand and helped him break the potion bottle.

The throbbing pain in Ignis’ side ebbed and died out.  He still felt exhausted, but gaining relief from the pain was a welcome change.  Closing his eyes once more Ignis tried to calm his breathing.  However, the feeling of fumbling fingers near his stomach caused him to flinch.

“Sorry.” Gladio mumbled.  “I gotta check the wound to see if you need another potion.”  He worked the knot in the t-shirt loose, and tugged it away. 

Ignis chose to keep his eyes shut as Gladio worked.  He could feel calloused, warm hands, pulling his dress shirt up and away from the now closed wound.   The sound of the water running in the sink came next, and a warm rag was soon cleaning his side.    

Gladio’s deep voice broke the silence.  “Hand me another one Prom.” 

Ignis heard the cap to the potion bottle come loose.  He felt the effects immediately, as Gladio poured the contents over his now healing wound.   

“Thanks buddy, you can put the box back now.” Gladio said quietly. “Now it’s your turn.  Time to get rid of that blood soaked shirt.” 

Barely registering that he was being spoken to, Ignis pried his eyes open again.  “I still need to call the king.”  He uttered weakly. 

“Your phone works, why can’t you just make a call?” Gladio asked.

“I don’t know how deep the plot goes, and if my phone is tapped then it won’t help us catch the bad guys.”

“Ah, gotcha.  Do you happen to remember any of the codes for the encrypted radio channels?  I’ve got an older radio around here we could try.”

This bit of information got Ignis’attention right away, and he tried to sit up.  A sudden wave of dizziness washed over him, and he threw out his hands to try and grab the table.  Gladio’s arm was around his shoulders a second later guiding him up. 

“You really suck at taking it easy don’t ya.” He chided. 

Sighing heavily Ignis slumped into Gladio’s shoulder. “I – I’m not myself right now, I do apologize.” 

“I didn’t mean anything bad by it; now let’s get you cleaned up before we try our radio experiment.  I’m assuming you remember some of the codes since you got all animated there for a second.”

Moving to the bench instead of the table top was an improvement.  Gladio helped remove his ruined shirt, and found a blanket to wrap around Ignis’ lean frame.  Prompto came back into the room, and stood smiling, waiting for instructions. 

“Wanna sit with Ignis while I clean the table?” Gladio asked. 

The blond hopped over and plopped down next to the advisor.  “What’s the plan? What did I miss?”

“We will be trying to reach out to the citadel via radio.”  Ignis replied around a yawn.  He still couldn’t shake the feeling of sadness that gripped him.  Was it really true, was Noct gone? 

Gladio finished cleaning the table and left to retrieve the radio.  Prompto took this brief break to speak again.  “I’m sure your friend is alright, there must be another reason why you can’t communicate with him right now.” 

“Hmmm.” Ignis hummed.   “I do wonder how that glaive knew I was here.”  He pondered aloud.

“We have a good crew of men that work with us, but they all saw you getting plucked out of the sea, in the middle of nowhere.  I’m sure that’s a difficult thing to stay quiet about.”  Prompto added.  “It doesn’t take long for news to spread unfortunately.”

“Oh.  Are they coming back aboard?”

“No, we won’t need another full crew like that for another month or so.  It’s just Gladdy and me for now.  And you of course.” The blond corrected. 

Gladio came back in the room before Ignis could craft another question.  “Ok lets’ give this a try.  Code please?” He asked, as he sat down on the other side of Ignis.

“Shit.” Ignis swore suddenly.

“What?!” Gladio asked.

“This won’t work, the person who betrayed the crown is high enough up in the ranks to have access to all of these codes.  Damn, why didn’t I think of that sooner.”  he lamented.

“Be happy you didn’t make it to the safe house, I’m sure your big boss would have had access to that line as well.”

Sighing through his nose Ignis nodded.  “Why must I be thwarted at every turn!”   

“Wait, if the bad guy can hear what you say on those encrypted lines, does that mean he’s using them too?” Prompto asked suddenly.

Ignis perked up again.  “Oh, that is a good point.  Perhaps we could listen in.” 

Gladio reached over to a nearby shelf and grabbed a pen and paper.  “Write down as many of those encrypted codes as you can, we’ll go through them and see what we can hear.”

Ignis paused.  “You do know we will be breaking several laws doing this.”

“It’s a matter of life or death so I think that makes up for it.” Gladio offered. 

Ignis hoped he wasn’t doing the wrong thing as he wrote down the codes.  The idea of Gladiolus Amicitia being a bad guy was a hard pill to swallow.  He had to go with his gut and trust Clarus’ only son.  Prompto was a mystery but Gladio seemed to think he was on the up and up.  They were his last avenue of help so what choice did Ignis have?  “Here you go.” He said quietly sliding the paper into the middle of the table a few moments later. 

“Have at it blondie.” Gladio announced looking at the younger man.  “He’s the tech guru not me.” Gladio admitted. 

“Um – what names should I listen for?” Prompto asked meekly as he set up the radio.

“Mine, Noctis, and perhaps Titus.” Ignis answered.

“Ok I’ll cycle through the channels and see what we pick up.” The blond began fiddling with the radio and after a minute he had the first channel live. They listened but nothing came through but crackling.  “Guess I’ll try the others.” 

After fifteen minutes Prompto had gone through all the codes and but no one was transmitting anything.  Ignis was still huddled in the blanket from earlier.  He was warm, but he felt like he was about to pass out.    Leaning forward on the table, Ignis rested his head while he listened to the radio static. 

Unaware of how much time had passed in this manner Ignis’ body involuntarily jerked to stay awake. “What’s happened?” He asked groggily. 

“Nothing yet, we’ve been listening for over an hour.” Prompto offered.

Gladio sighed from beside him.  “You should go lie down Ignis, I’ll stay and listen, but you need to rest.”

“No – I’ve got to be here in case something comes through and you two don’t understand it.”

“We’ll take good notes I promise, but you need to sleep.”

“Hmmm.” Ignis really was exhausted, but he desperately wanted information about Drautos.  He had to find that traitor and make him pay.  The advisor wanted to believe like Gladio, that Noct was still alive, but it was so improbable.  His magic was gone.  He was about to add more when the radio crackled to life.

“ading to altissia – caught fish.”  A broken voice announced.

“I thought you said these were private channels?” Prompto asked in confusion.  “Why are they talking about fishing.”

Gladio held his hand up for them all to wait.  “These people, the traitors to the crown have the same problem as us.  We are all using the same lines of communication.  It might be code.”

“Which encrypted code did you use to get this channel?” Ignis asked quickly.

Prompto showed him and Ignis instantly knew this wasn’t a mistake.  “Keep listening, please.”  It was one of Drautos’ encoded lines.  He’d seen this encryption code by mistake ages ago.  He’d been in between meetings at the citadel, when a glaive had come up and hand delivered a file folder. 

 Ignis had opened the folder and realized it had been delivered to the wrong person.  It had actually been meant for Drautos, the captain of the guard. The glaive had come running back a few minutes later, requesting the folder, citing their mistake.

The only piece of information Ignis had remembered, when he looked in the folder was a single encryption code.  The advisor didn’t recall it being one of the regular codes, so he’d committed it to memory.  He’d planned to check it later but he never had the time.  Instead he’d written it down and filed it away.  However, now given the current situation this could be the break he needed. 

The radio came back to life again.  “Did you throw it back?” The unknown voice asked.

“Nope – strung it up.”  The first person replied.  The voice sounded familiar, Ignis wasn’t sure if it was Drautos talking or maybe Lazarus.  The radio channel was too crackly to tell for sure. 

The radio voice laughed suddenly.  “Did it put up a fight?”

“Of course, though it wasn’t strong enough to win against me.  Fitting that it’ll die where it all started.”

“ETA?” The voice asked. 

“Few hours.”

Then the radio went silent.  The conversation was over. 

“Oh man I’m so confused right now.” Prompto wailed.  “Please tell me why this dude’s creepy fishing conversation was important?”

“Well I think that confirms the prince is alive.” Gladio announced relieved.   

Ignis barely registered the talk going on around him.  He was hung up on the last sentence, ‘fitting that it’ll die where it all started’.  What did that mean?   There was a clue in there about Noct’s location and he had to figure it out, fast.


	3. The Hunt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Searching for a mystery island isn't easy. Prompto, Gladio, and Ignis have to hurry if they want to save Noct in time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whump n fluff... it should be my middle name. :) Anywho enjoy. Feel free to scream at me over this I'm having a lot of fun with this AU.

Prompto stared out into the vastness of the sea.  They’d left Altissia hours ago, and had plotted a course for a random no named island.   The blond was piloting the boat since Gladio was otherwise engaged.  He could also feel the beginnings of a headache threatening to overtake him.  Their current course of action had taken quite a bit of discussion and planning to craft. 

They’d all sat in the common room for almost two hours, trying to decipher the coded message from the radio.  Prompto had never been involved in such a deep conversation in his life.  The history of the Eos was raked back and forth and then some.  Ancient battles and prophesies about salvation were dissected for hidden meanings. 

They were looking for the exact location of where the savior of Eos had come, some five hundred years ago.  Scholars had been debating that for centuries, and here they’d been trying to crack it in a few hours.  How the bad guys had figured it out was a mystery, or perhaps they too had it wrong.  The whole idea was like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

Surprisingly between the lot of them, they’d been able to create a list of possible locations. Four areas had been flagged and they were enroute to the first one.    Taking a glance behind him Prompto checked on Ignis, he was bundled up in a blanket and passed out on the bench seat.  Gladio was sitting next to him with his nose buried in a book, and his free arm slung over Ignis’ shoulder.  Prompto tried to crane his neck better to double check, but it also looked like Ignis’ head was actually resting in Gladio’s lap.

Interesting, the blond was going to have to ask his friend about that move later.

Earlier Ignis had gotten very excited about their plan, and had rushed to stand when they’d finished plotting a course.  However, his body had reached its limits and he’d literally passed out mid step.  Gladio had been close enough to catch him but it was still hard to see.  The poor guy was pushing himself to try and save his friend.   Prompto still didn’t quite understand why Gladio hadn’t taken Ignis back to a cabin. The beds were comfy and the man needed rest.  His friend had merely stated that if Ignis woke up, he’d be desperate to know where they were.    This way he’d get an answer right away and perhaps rest easier. 

The blond could never figure out why Gladio viewed things in a different light sometimes.   He knew he’d been through special training as a teenager, and he was scarily smart when it mattered.  Though the big guy wasn’t great with complicated technology, he still appreciated it. 

They were about thirty minutes from their destination.  Prompto hoped they were on the right track, if they didn’t find the prince in time he might die.  A sudden noise caused the blond to turn again quickly.  Ignis had woken up and was sitting up blinking owlishly at him. 

He was still shirtless, and the blanket that had been wrapped around his lean shoulders had fallen off slightly.  “What’s happened?” He rasped.

“We are close to the first stop Ignis.” Prompto offered. 

Ignis simply sighed and went to swing his legs onto the floor. “We must get ready.”

Gladio reached out and stopped Ignis from standing.  “Take it slowly, you still haven’t recovered from earlier.”

The advisor seemed to listen this time and stayed seated.  Instead he gathered the blanket up over his shoulders again and leaned back into the bench.  “What is the plan of attack?”

“We need to find a place to dock the boat, and then we can go up on shore and check things out.” Gladio announced as he put his book away.

Prompto turned back around and kept the boat on course.  After ten minutes he could see an island ahead.  “I think I see it.” He exclaimed. 

“Good let’s see if there is place to drop anchor.” Gladio added.

Twenty five minutes later, and it appeared that the horrible little patch of rock in the middle of the sea had no harbor.  They would have no choice but to drop the small dingy on board and approach that way.  However, when Gladio started reviewing the navigation map he realized there was one other way. 

“There is one spot that is pretty close to the shore, Prompto if you can navigate the boat there.” He pointed on the chart.  “I can jump over and swim ashore.  That way I could scout the place quickly to see if the prince is there.   We are under a deadline and I want to make sure we don’t waste time.” He replied.

“What if you get attacked, we can’t help you.” Ignis added.  

“We’ve circled this island twice already, and I’ve not seen a single footprint or sign of life on the beach.   I don’t think this is the place.  Let me swim ashore and check, it’ll save time, trust me.” Gladio urged. 

Prompto could tell Ignis was struggling with the decision.  “Fine, but how will we know if you are in trouble or not?”

“That’s easy, I don’t come back.” The taller man added dryly.  “I’m taking my hunting knife and I’ll take a flare as well.  I’ll set it off if I run into trouble.  Is that acceptable?”

The advisor sat and pondered for a minute.  “Yes, I suppose that will do.  I can come with --.”

“NO.” Gladio spit out.  “You need to take it easy, your body isn’t fully healed yet.  Stay here with Prom and I’ll go scout the place.” 

The discussion ended, and Prompto worked to maneuver the boat close to the shore without hitting the reef and rocks nearby.  He dropped anchor and they all went out on the stern of the boat.   Surprisingly Ignis allowed Gladio to gently push him down by the shoulders, so he was sitting cross legged on the deck.  

“Seriously, don’t get up until I get back, I’m not sure Prompto’s strong enough to fish you outta the water if you fall in.”  Gladio chided. 

Prompto watched as Gladio took off his shirt and shoes and climbed over the railing.  He left a rope out hanging over the side, so he could climb back up when he returned.  With a nod he jumped in and surfaced a moment later.  The blond sat down next to Ignis and watched his friend swim towards shore.

“Do you think he’ll be alright?” Ignis asked worriedly. 

Turning to face the other man Prompto smiled. “Yeah, he’ll be okay.  He knows how to stay out of trouble.”  Ignis didn’t respond but nodded, as he continued to watch Gladio’s form swim towards the beach.  The blond could see the bags under Ignis’ eyes, he really needed rest.  The fact that he didn’t put up a fight, when Gladio forced him to sit, was telling.

Within a few minutes Prompto could see Gladio wading up the beach.  He had his knife out and was walking cautiously.  They watched him comb the beach, and then disappear on the other side of the island.

“How far is the next island?” Ignis asked quietly.  “I’m loath to admit it, but I do agree that this place seems rather uninhabited.”

“It should be another forty minutes to an hour depending on the current.” He offered.  “Don’t worry we’ll find your friend.  I’m sure of it.”

Ignis stayed quiet and focused his gaze on the island, waiting for Gladio to reappear.  Soon enough his hulking from could be seen through the vegetation.  Once he was on the beach, he put his knife away and walked into the sea again.   That must have meant he didn’t find anything.

It took another few minutes for Gladio to swim back to the boat.  Once he’d grabbed hold of the rope dangling in the water he yelled instructions. “Prompto, haul up the anchor and let’s get out of here.” 

He nodded and ran off to go get things prepped.  Guess there was nothing on the island.  What if the next stop didn’t have anyone or any clues either?  Things were looking a little grim. 

  

 

* * *

 

 

 

Gladio gripped the rope and pulled himself up.  Ignis was sitting and waiting for him at the top with a discouraged look.  Before he could say anything the advisor spoke up.  “What if he’s dead?  What if I’m too late?” 

“You can’t live life based off ‘what ifs’ and I know you’re already aware of that.  You’re a smart guy.” Gladio huffed in between breaths as he coiled the rope up. 

“I wish I could help more.”

“We aren’t sure what we will encounter when we find him, so resting again would be helpful.”

Ignis cracked a wry smile.  “Fine, but is there any chance I could get a shirt to wear?”

“Don’t like going around shirtless?” Gladio asked with a quirked eyebrow.  “It’s really comfy.”

“That, it is, but I don’t like being cold.”

Gladio went to respond, but he took a minute to really look at Ignis.  The man was still clutching the blanket around his shoulders and looked worn out.   “I’ll have Prompto find you something; my selection is mostly t-shirts and tank tops.   I don’t think you normally wear that type of clothing do you?”   

Ignis shook his head and made to stand up.  Gladio helped him up, and hovered behind while they walked back to the bridge.   Prompto was almost done navigating the boat away from the rocks and reef.  The blond looked over for confirmation that they were good to go, and Gladio nodded his approval. 

“Hey kiddo, do you think you might have a dress shirt that would fit Ignis?”

“Huh?” Prompto furrowed his brows turning to look at the pair.  “I mean it might fit, Ignis has broader shoulders than me but it’s better than your nonexistent wardrobe.”

“This is what I put up with on a regular basis Ignis.”  Gladio deadpanned.

“Come on lets go check out my stash of stuff.” Prompto enthused as he escorted Ignis towards his cabin.

“Take a freaking nap while your down there, I’m good up here.” He shouted, hoping the man would take his advice. 

Gladio wasn’t sure what had transpired when neither of them came back upstairs after ten minutes.  Good, maybe Ignis had laid down to rest.  Hoping the next destination would have more clues than the last, Gladio steered the ship towards location number two. 

After about thirty minutes he could see two arch shaped spires sticking up out of the Eos.  The coordinates matched his map, this must be the place.  Using the intercom Gladio called down to the other men. 

It only took a few minutes for Prompto and Ignis to return.  The advisor looked slightly better; maybe he’d taken a nap.  He was wearing a nice clean white dress shirt.  It fit him fairly well, considering that Prompto was shorter and not as broad shouldered.  The sleeves were rolled up, either for comfort or because they were too short.  Gladio didn’t ask but pointed to the island instead.

“Do you think there will be a place to harbor the boat?” Ignis asked quickly.

“Not sure yet, but we can hope.”

“Look! Look --.” Prompto yelped as he bolted out of the bridge.  “There’s oil in the water over there.  Do you think a ships been here recently?” he shouted from outside.

“That’s not an exact science.” Gladio yelled back. 

As they approached, Prompto quickly started gesturing towards a place to dock the boat.  It was a rock outcropping that featured a carved pair of steps.  This place had been inhabited at some point. 

“I’m coming with you this time.” Ignis announced.  “Before you cast an opinion, I did take a short nap.  Prompto stayed with me so you can ask him, if you don’t believe me.”

“Hey now, it’s not that I wouldn’t believe you, I just know you’re pushing yourself to hard.  If there is trouble when we land, please try and let me help.”

“I’ll keep it in mind.”  Ignis replied calmly. 

However, Gladio could tell the advisor was struggling to keep his emotions in check.  They needed to find the prince, time was running out.  “Prompto, have you found a way to secure the boat?” He ventured as he watched the young man peer over the railing. 

Prompto came running back inside a moment later. “There is a cleat but I can’t reach it.  You might be able to, otherwise we can drop anchor and row over.” 

“I’ll have a look, hold on.”  Thankfully Gladio’s longer arms enabled him to reach the cleat.  It was a weathered and beaten thing.  He was surprised it was still holding fast to the rock, it looked to be centuries old.  Grabbing the rope Prompto had left in position he secured the boat.  The blond had already thrown over the rubber buoys, so the boat wouldn’t scrape the ancient dock.  Next he lowered the walkway, Prompto and Ignis were already there waiting to cross.  “Prompto did you do that thing we do sometimes?” He asked.

“Yeah, I did, we are good.” He chirped. 

Ignis looked at the two of them oddly, but didn’t say anything.  He merely motioned for Gladio to go first.  He could feel his heart hammering away as they crossed to the stone dock.  If someone had been there recently, they’d not left any signs. 

There was a narrow path that led from the harbor to the beach.  They were forced to go single file as they moved forward. 

“Should we call his name?” Prompto whispered from the back.  “Are we the only ones here?”

“I would advise against it at this time.” Ignis answered. 

They continued on in silence until the path split.  The right stayed on the beach; the left continued up more stone carved steps, and turned a corner.  Gladio went first and had his knife out just in case.  Manmade features began appearing as they ascended.  Symbols representing the six were everywhere.  This place was definitely sacred. 

After climbing for another few minutes they finally reached the top of the path.  The view changed drastically.  It was like a giant had come and moved stones about.  Prompto was the first to lose his composure. 

“Holy shit!” He squealed and then promptly clamped his hands over his mouth.  “Sorry.” He mumbled a second later. 

Gladio couldn’t blame him.   The sight that had greeted them was giant gold staves thrust into the ground.  These were surrounding a rock outcropping in the center.  

“I see an entrance with more stairs.” Ignis uttered quickly.  “We must check in there.”

The three ran across the grass field towards the opening in the rock face.  Looking in revealed a steep pair of stairs going up.  Gladio didn’t wait and bounded up the stairs, that’s when he heard a voice yelling for help.  The shouting was getting more frantic as he neared the top.  However, his view was obstructed until he’d cleared the stairwell completely.

A dark haired youth appeared before him a second later, chained up by his wrists and standing on a wooden crate.  “I gotcha highness.” Gladio exclaimed as he ran forward.  However, due to the excitement of it all, the prince moved too quickly and toppled the box under his feet.  It went sideways and the youth’s full weight was suddenly on his wrists.   Throwing his head back he cried out in pain. 

Thinking quickly Gladio lifted the prince up; grabbing the youth’s thighs and resting the weight on his broad shoulder.  The younger man gasped in relief and started to list backwards.  Grabbing a fist full of his shirt, Gladio managed to keep him in place.  He could feel the poor kid shaking from the adrenaline rush.  

“Help me!” The prince begged.  “Please – I --.” He stopped midsentence when he finally saw Ignis and immediately went hysterical.  “I – I thought – you -- you were dead!” He sputtered in between sobs.

Ignis and Prompto worked as fast as they could to release the restraints around the prince’s wrists. “Noct it’s alright, you’re safe.” Ignis breathed out in a rush.  “I’m okay, try and calm down, everything will be alright.”  

“But they said –they said -- you fell overboard!” He managed through his tears. 

“It doesn’t matter right now, we need to get you looked after.” Ignis replied worriedly.

It didn’t take long before the prince was free of the chains.  Gladio chose to carefully resituate the youth in his arms so he could carry him.  This move elicited a reaction.

“I – I can walk.” He whimpered, though with tears still streaming down his pale face, Gladio didn’t think it was a very believable statement. 

“I know you can, but I figured you might want a change of scenery first.” He ventured.  The prince sucked back a sob and relaxed slightly in his hold.  The youth nodded and looked over at Ignis who had come to stand next to Gladio. 

The advisor’s eyes were watery, as he checked on his prince.  Gladio could see his green eyes roving around looking for injuries.  Ignis paused on the odd contraption around the prince’s neck but didn’t directly ask about it.  “We have some potions available if you’re in pain.” He offered instead.  

“Yes, please.” He pleaded. 

Gladio interrupted before Ignis could respond.  “There is a small knoll outside the entrance, we can rest there for now.”

The sunlight was warm and reassuring as they exited the sacred place.  Gladio walked over to the grass covered spot and placed the prince on the ground.  He winced as soon as Gladio moved his arms away.  “Sorry, did I hurt you?!” Gladio exclaimed.

The prince shook his head and curled up on his side.  “My back hurts from standing for so long.” He groaned.  “Iggy?” The youth questioned.  “Help.”

Ignis was there a second later tugging the dark haired man into his arms.  “Gladio, may I have a potion please.”

Gladio looked to Prompto, and motioned for the kid to hand over the messenger bag he’d been carrying.   The blond complied and scooted closer to them.  “Here ya go.”

This simple transaction caught the prince’s attention.  “My magic is sealed right now.  So where did you get a potion?”  He asked looking up at Ignis. 

“Sealed? How?” Ignis asked with worry.

“This thing.” The youth lamented, pointing to the collar around his neck. 

Prompto spoke up first. “Oh, I might be able to remove it, if you let me take a look.”

The prince looked right at the blond and blinked a few times.  “Drautos said it could shock me, so be careful okay.”

“Promise, I won’t hurt you.” Prompto swore eagerly as he crawled over. 

Ignis maintained his death grip on the prince as Prompto examined the collar.

Gladio took the opportunity to fish out a potion and handed it to Ignis.  The advisor helped the prince to break it, and the youth sighed heavily once the magic had taken effect. 

“Um – highness.” Prompto cautiously interrupted.  “I need you to turn to the left for me.”

“Mmm – you both can call me Noct.” He responded weakly. 

Prompto looked to Ignis for approval before he spoke again. “Ok Noct, I’m gonna pop the little panel open on the side and take a look.  Let me know if you need me to stop.”   Noct nodded and closed his eyes. 

The blond worked in silence as he carefully examined the collar.  After about ten minutes he looked up with a smile.  “I can remove it, but you have to help me Gladdy.”

“Whoa!  Wait.” Noct exclaimed hoarsely after forcing his eyes open.  “As in Iris’ big brother?” 

“Yep that’s me.” Gladio admitted. 

“Guess that explains the tattoo.” Noct breathed, as he reached out a trembling hand to touch Gladio’s arm.  “I remember the few times Iris visited Clarus at the citadel.  She’d always be talking about her big brother Gladdy.”

“Sorry we never had a chance to meet until now, and feel free to call me Gladio.” 

“I like Gladio.” Noct hummed as he rested his head against Ignis’ chest.  “I think that’s what your dad calls you.” 

Gladio nodded at the thought.  He missed his father but life had gone a different direction for him.  He wasn’t the prince’s shield, but looking at the scene before him Gladio questioned that choice heavily.  Noct could have easily died if they hadn’t arrived in time. 

“Big guy?” Prompto questioned softly.  “I still need your help, I don’t want the bad guys to set this off remotely, now that we rescued the prince.” 

“Shit, that’s a good point.” Gladio exclaimed as he moved next to the blond.  Prompto showed him what to hold, and when he produced a pair of small wire cutters from his pocket Gladio rolled his eyes.  “Do I want to know why you carry those around with you?” 

“I need small tools sometimes, they help.  Now focus, and hold that green wire out of the way.” 

Prompto furrowed his brow and bit his tongue slightly as he worked.  The younger man began cutting wires and tugging on things inside the device.  When a harsh clicking noise broke the silence they all flinched.  The collar was finally loose.  Gladio gently pushed Prompto’s hands aside and unlatched the offending item.  Noct looked like he might start to cry again when Gladio removed it entirely.

“Thank the six.” Ignis sighed.  “Do you have access to the armiger again?”

Noct lifted his hand and summoned a potion.  He banished it in a shimmer of blue light a second later.   “What’s next?” The prince asked quietly.

“We go back to the boat and get outta here.  Where do you want to go next Ignis?” Gladio asked. 

“I – I.” Ignis tried to start a sentence but faltered and blinked slowly.  “Uh – I’m not feeling well.” He managed.  “Gladio, I may need some assistance.”

“Prompto, help Noct sit up for a second.” Gladio ordered as he stood quickly to resituate nearer to the advisor.  “I told you to take it easy.  Do you need a potion or a fucking nap?” He asked urgently.    

“It’s the blood loss that’s done this.  A potion won’t help.” 

Gladio gently gripped Ignis’ upper arm in case he fell over.  However, all this did was cause the man to lean into him for support. 

“Blood loss!” Noct yelped.  “Wha --.”

“Not right now.” Gladio begged.  The prince shut his mouth thankfully, and was free of Ignis’ arms and resting against Prompto.  “Come on, do you think you can make it back to the boat?”

“No.” Ignis whispered as he began tilting more heavily. 

“Shit! Uh – well here, lie down.” Gladio responded worriedly, as he maneuvered Ignis down on the grass.   “Noct do you have anything in the, ah – armiger we can use to cushion Ignis’ head with?”

The prince nodded and in another blue flash a coat appeared in his hands.  Gladio assumed it was probably Ignis’ as it had the same styling as the shirt he’d been found in.  Rolling it up, Gladio was able to gingerly lift Ignis’ head up and shove the coat in place.

“Are you comfortable?” Gladio asked.

“Can I rest for a bit?  If we need to go I can --.”

“No! “ Gladio exclaimed and then he shook his head wincing.   “I mean yes, you can rest and no, we don’t need to leave right away.”  He watched as Ignis nodded slightly and closed his eyes.  “Please rest, everything is fine.”

“Does he need a potion?” Noct asked nervously from where he was still leaning against the blond. 

“No, he had a run in with a dirty glaive earlier and suffered the consequences.  I used a potion already to close the wound but he lost blood.  He’s refused to take a fucking break until he found you.”

“Yeah, that’s Iggy for ya.” Noct offered. “Um can I lie down too?”

“Yeah sure!  Do you need anything more?  A blanket or anything?”

“No, I figured Ignis would have told you already, I’m the prince of naps.  I can fall asleep anywhere, anytime.”  He replied yawning.  “Thanks for saving me.  I don’t want to go through that ever again.”

Gladio had enough sense to give the prince a bottle of water before he lay down in the grass next to Ignis.  It didn’t take long and the dark haired youth was asleep.   

“Feel free to join them blondie.  I have a feeling we will be spending the afternoon here until they wake up.”

“Do you mind if I go take some pictures, this place is amazing looking.”

Smiling Gladio nodded his approval.  His friend loved to take pictures and this place was picturesque. “Be careful and run the hell away if you see something bad.” 

“Got it.”

Leaning against the knoll Gladio got comfortable and kept watch.  He could only hope the bad guys weren’t planning on coming back.   Prompto had been tooling around for at least two hours, but he finally seemed tired when he got back. 

“Should I go get some food to snack on?” He asked hopeful. 

“Sure, wouldn’t hurt to check on the boat.  I’m surprised you didn’t go there already.” 

“I got distracted.” Prompto admitted sheepishly.  “There was a lot to take pictures of but I’ll be back soon.” He smiled.

Prompto took the messenger bag, and walked back towards the stairs and path that led to the stone harbor.  His tuft of blond hair soon disappeared and Gladio sighed.  He was hungry; he hoped Prompto would bring back good stuff. 

Suddenly a shout broke his train of thought.  He looked to the top of the stairs, as Prompto came bounding back up them with a panicked look.  He was yelling and pointing behind him.  “It’s the traitors!” He hollered.

This got Gladio’s blood pumping.  He stood drawing his knife as the blond ran closer.  Then he saw it, a flash of blue light, the same as the asshole from the alley in Altissia.  Shit.  Prompto wasn’t going to make it in time; the glaive was going to get him first.     


	4. Breathing Room

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompto struggles to get away from a new threat and Gladio questions his choices in life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure what to say about this one other than enjoy! I hope you all are liking the story so far.

All rational thought left Prompto’s brain as he ran away.   His heart was pounding and he was scared.  He’d almost been to the bottom of the stairs when he’d seen the man.  He was dressed in the same uniform as the other traitor.  Prompto had no choice but to run back the way he’d come when the guy saw him.  This was so bad. 

The fear and adrenaline kept his legs moving, Prompto didn’t want to die.  Gladio had a hard enough time fighting the other soldier, which meant he stood no chance against this guy.  Finally reaching the top of the stairs again Prompto shouted for Gladio.  He could at least warn his friend of the impending danger. 

He watched the big guy stand up and draw his knife, ready to defend what was out of sight on the other side of the knoll.  Then he heard the crackle of magic, the same sound the traitor made as he’d bounced Gladio around the alleyway in Altissia.

Two arms were around his waist a second later, and Prompto fell to the ground hard.  Another crackle of magic caught his attention, and before he could move there was a dagger at his throat. 

“Please – please don’t kill me!” Prompto sputtered as he remained still.

Gladio’s booming voice echoed out a moment later. “Let the kid go, he didn’t do anything to you.”

The glaive adjusted his position and put more weight on Prompto’s back, pinning him place.  The dagger was still inches from the blond’s throat.  “What are you doing here?” The soldier questioned gruffly.

“Nuthin’ but taking a break.  You saw our boat, we’re just fisherman.” Gladio shouted from across the open field.  He’d not moved since Prompto got tackled. 

The traitor didn’t say anything more and seemed to be considering his next move.  It was almost like he was waiting on someone.  Then it hit Prompto, the guy wasn’t alone, he had to have backup. 

“Please let me go.” Prompto tried again.  “Don’t kill me I didn’t do anything wrong.” He pleaded.

The last statement seemed to make the man flinch slightly.  “I’m not planning on killing you, unless you make the first move.”

Prompto went to say more when another man showed up at the top of the stairs.  Astrals, this one was even scarier looking than the man sitting on him.  He had a long sword by his hip and he was tall, but it was his scowl that was truly terrifying.  However, when he looked across the field to Gladio he relaxed slightly. 

“You can let the kid up.” He said to the first man who’d tackled Prompto. 

“Wha? He ran away the second he saw me.”

“And he’s friends with Clarus’ son Gladiolus.” The tall angry man gestured towards Gladio.  “I have a feeling he’s not a threat.”

The glaive huffed and slowly got up, finally removing the sharp dagger from Prompto’s neck.  “Try not to run away next time.” He offered.

“I had to though; you’re the traitors aren’t you?” Prompto asked confused, from where he was sitting on the ground trying to collect his wits.

“Why are you both here?” the angry man asked ignoring the question.  

Prompto turned to look at Gladio who’d not budged at all.  His big knife was still out and he looked pissed. 

“I come here with my buddy to take a fucking break and your glaive tries to kill us.  Why are you here?” He demanded. 

The second man smirked.   “Like father like son.  We are checking on a lead, but I don’t think you were taking a break either.  Your blond friend here mentioned something about traitors.” 

“How did you know to come here?” Gladio asked again.  “Was it because you were already here yesterday?”

“Hey! I could ask the same question of you, buddy.” The glaive huffed. 

“We overheard a coded communication regarding a fish, if you must know.”  The tall man answered.

“How do I know you weren’t the one that sent it in the first place?” Gladio inquired still stone faced. 

“You’d be dead.” 

Gladio’s face morphed from one of pure anger to a child being scolded. “Gee thanks Cor!” he huffed putting his knife away.  “I’m not that bad, I do practice.  I beat that little twit Tredd a few days ago, that should stand for something.”

“I told you Tredd was an asshole.” The glaive cut in.  “Wish I could have seen that.” 

Cor sighed suddenly and frowned.  “We are on a tight deadline, and though I would like to know how you managed to get involved Gladio, I must save it for another day.   Nyx do a quick search in the tomb for any clues and then we must continue our mission.”

Prompto looked at Gladio to see if he’d tell them they’d found the prince already.  His friend stayed silent and waited.  A hand was suddenly thrust in his face; Nyx was offering him a hand up.  He hesitated a moment and then accepted the help. 

“Sorry if I hurt you, I had to be sure you were one of the good guys.”

“By almost slicing me open?” Prompto questioned with wide eyes. 

“I wasn’t going to.  I needed your buddy over there to listen to me, he seemed like he was about to go off the rails.” 

The blond didn’t answer as they all walked over to Gladio. He’d not moved during the whole confrontation.   Once he was close enough, the big guy threw an arm around his shoulders and squeezed. 

“You ok blondie?”

Prompto nodded and leaned into his friend.  “Yeah, that was scary though.” 

“Be careful not to wake them.” Gladio offered cryptically as he watched Nyx and Cor walk ahead towards the tomb entrance. 

“So you did find the prince!” Cor exclaimed turning around to face him fully.  “Thank the six, is he inside?”

“Other side of that knoll.” Gladio indicated with a nod of his head. 

Prompto watched as Nyx ran over first to investigate.  “Shiva’s tits, Cor come look at this.” The glaive breathed with relief. 

Cor walked over and his face changed completely when he cleared the knoll.  “I thought you’d slipped up when you said _they_ were sleeping.  We’d been told that Ignis had died.  Was he here with Noctis?” He asked bewildered.

“We actually picked him up in the middle of the sea, he’d been shoved overboard.”

Cor winced and shook his head.  Does either of them need immediate medical attention?” The marshal asked concerned.

“Ignis needs to go to sleep for more than two hours and the prince needs the same.  Potions have already been administered.” Gladio replied. 

“I guess you do remember some of your training Gladio.” Cor admitted with a smile.  “I wondered why you wouldn’t move earlier, you were standing guard.”   

“Yeah, well I can’t protect them if warpy mcwarpy pants here can close the gap in a blink of an eye.” Gladio offered as they reached the knoll. 

Nyx snorted at the comment and kneeled down to check Noct’s pulse.  “He’s stable.” He announced a minute later.

Prompto sank into the grass with a heavy sigh, he was glad the encounter was over.  The man with the sword, Cor, seemed relieved by the new development and crouched down to check Ignis’ pulse as well.

At the touch, Ignis groaned and rolled his head to the side, while struggling to open his eyes.  “Gladio?” He mumbled.

The big guy was there a second later kneeling next to him.  “Hey, take it easy.  Some of your friends showed up.”  Gladio offered as he reached out and squeezed Ignis’ shoulder.   However, to Prompto it looked like Gladio was trying to keep Ignis from sitting up. 

“Huh?” The advisor queried as he worked to see clearly.  “Cor? What on Eos are you doing here?” He finally asked. 

“Trying to rescue prince charming but you beat us to it.”

At the mention of the prince, Ignis’ eyes truly opened and he tried to sit up.  Gladio’s hand on his shoulder prevented that.  “I’m serious; you need to take it easy.  Sleeping beauty isn’t going anywhere at the moment.”

Ignis relented and relaxed once more.  “How long have I been out?” 

“About two hours.” 

“Hmmm I see.” Ignis closed his eyes again, and Prompto wasn’t sure if he’d fallen asleep once more. 

“You two should go check the tomb for any clues, we were only focused on helping Noct when we arrived.”

Cor nodded and stood.  “Kid, what’s your name?” He asked of Prompto.

The blond startled for a moment after realizing he was being spoken to.  “Um -- Prompto.”

“Think you could show us how you found the prince?”

“Yeah sure!” He enthused.  Prompto liked being useful and his initial fear of the two men had died down.   He wanted to prove he was the good guy.  Cor motioned for him to lead the way and Prompto took off for the entrance.  He’d been so focused on untying the prince he’d not looked at the space.

The wooden crate was upturned and close to where the spot where Noct had been.  “He was standing on that box and had his arms out like this.” Prompto explained as he held his own arms out to the side to demonstrate. 

“Was he suspended?” Nyx asked worried.

“No that’s what the box was there for – he was chained up by his wrists and the box kept his weight off them.”

“I’m curious if that was planned or improvised.  Someone could have easily caused him great pain by leaving him hanging.”  Cor pondered. 

“I’ve got standard issue glaive boot prints over by the door marshal.” Nyx announced sullenly.  “Two pair.”

“Well that answers that.”  Cor frowned. “We must head out.” 

“Uh -- are you all going to leave together?” Prompto asked quickly. 

“Yes, we must.  We need to regroup and go after the traitors.”

“Oh.” Prompto mumbled.  He didn’t want them all to leave, he wanted to continue helping.  “Can I come with you and help?” He asked. 

Cor paused and stared at him hard. “Why, you know it’s dangerous.  What could you possibly do to aid in this fight Prompto?”

“I’m good with electronics!  I got the magic collar thing off of Noct’s neck when we rescued him.   Um – I’m good at--.”

“What collar?” Cor inquired seriously, cutting him off. 

“This one.” Prompto replied as dug in his messenger bag to retrieve it. “It was blocking his magic.”

“That’s niff tech.” Nyx muttered from across the room.  “That means our bad guy is working to get into that network.”

The tall man looked at Prompto once more. “So you would leave your friend to come with us?”

“I was sorta thinking I could convince him to come with me.” Prompto replied softly.  “I don’t want to leave Gladio and I don’t want you all to go.” 

“What if we make it seem like we didn’t find him?” Nyx interrupted. “We could have Iggy and Noct stay with blondie and Gladio on their boat.  We all go to Altissia but not at the same time.” 

“What good would it do?” Cor asked.

“We might be able to catch more of the traitors together, if they think their scam is still going.  Noct knows who kidnapped him, and if we find him then of course he’ll tell all.”

Prompto couldn’t help but get excited; this meant he might get to help.  Instead of blurting out his thoughts he forced his brain to wait.  His patience paid off. 

“I think that’s a good idea.  Let’s go make sure Gladio is willing to go along with it.  Though we might have an issue, your boat engine is down.”

“Did you sabotage our boat?” Prompto exclaimed worriedly.

“NO!” Nyx huffed.  “The thing wouldn’t start, we boarded to check for signs of the prince, and your boat was down for the count.”

“Oh, Gladio and I have the boat rigged so if we remove a small part it won’t start.  It’s harder to steal a boat if you have to tow it.”

Cor pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.  “Why am I not surprised.  Guess Gladio paid more attention to his training then I realized.”

“Were you the one who trained him?”

“Yes, he’d asked me to give him lessons in private, in case he took up the family business.  For a while there I thought it had been for naught, but it seems like he’s using what he learned.”

“Whoa! Someone actually convinced you to give them private lessons!  I have enough trouble getting you to spar with me let alone get a private freaking lesson.”   Nyx ranted with wide eyes.

“Gladio’s a good kid, I wanted to help.”  

Nyx rolled his eyes and dropped the topic.  They all made to leave the tomb and rejoin the others outside.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

Ignis drifted into consciousness again, it took a second to remember that Cor and Nyx had joined them.  Noct was safe they only had to find Drautos and arrest him.  The advisor figured this task was going to be difficult, but he was thankful they were safe at the moment.

Slowly opening his eyes revealed Gladio seated by his side.  The man appeared relaxed and was looking at the entrance of the tomb.  “Did they go inside?” Ignis asked quietly.

“Hmmm – Yeah, Cor wanted to see if there were any clues in there.  We were kinda goal oriented during our visit, so looking around at shit wasn’t an option.” 

“True.  So what will you do next?”  Ignis pondered aloud.  He wasn’t looking forward to saying goodbye.  He enjoyed Gladio and Prompto’s company but this wasn’t their fight.

“Dunno – I might see if Cor needs any help with anything.  Otherwise it’s back to fishing for me.” Gladio offered glumly.

“How do you know Cor?”

“Oh, he trained me when I was teenager.  There was a time when I had seriously considered following my father’s wishes, to become shield to the prince.  I got my tattoo and asked Cor to help me train, but I never told my dad.  I figured if took the shield’s oath he’d be happy, but If I didn’t go through with it he would have been devastated.   I didn’t want to give him false hope, so I didn’t tell him what I was doing.”

Ignis listened and couldn’t help but feel sympathy.  He’d been slated to be a royal advisor from a young age.  He loved Noct and wouldn’t change anything in his life, but the ability to choose was an interesting notion.  “Have you not seen Clarus since you got your tattoo?” He asked curiously. That was a hard thing to hide; the ink covered most of Gladio’s upper body and his arms.

“Not really, the last time I saw him was two years ago, I’d had it completed by then but I wore a dark long sleeved shirt to hide it. Now though, I can’t help but wonder how this situation would have been different if I’d taken up the oath.  He could have died if we didn’t get to him in time.” Gladio somberly replied as he looked over to the sleeping prince.

“You can’t hold yourself responsible for something of that nature.  We thought we among friends, it was a sneak attack.” 

“Still, I need to reconsider my life choices.  What good am I doing as a fisherman?  I could be serving a greater good.”

“Uh – feeding the masses with yummy fish is a greater good.” Ignis blurted. 

The dark haired man snorted and smiled. “Not what I meant, but I’ll take it for now.”

“Can you help me sit up?  I’d like to get my bearings before we leave.” 

Gladio nodded and assisted Ignis.  He only felt marginally dizzy, which was an improvement over earlier in the day.  Leaning back into Gladio’s arm Ignis acclimated to being upright.  Now that Noct was safe maybe he could convince his brain to take a break and let him rest.  A loud rumble erupted from his stomach a moment later.  Astrals, he needed food and more sleep.

“We need to get you something to eat, and then will you take a nap that’s longer than two hours?” The big guy inquired.

Ignis nodded and opened his mouth to add more, but a movement near the tomb entrance caught his eye.  Cor, Nyx, and Prompto were coming back.  Time was running out, he would have to leave Gladio and he wasn’t happy about that prospect. 

Cor approached first. “Gladio if you have a minute.” 

Gladio first checked to make Ignis would stay upright after he removed his arm, and then follow Cor out of earshot.  Prompto and Nyx were chatting away like they’d known each other for years.  The blond was very friendly and seemed happy to share any and all details of his life thus far. Noct was sleeping like a brick to his left.  Ignis could only hope when he awoke that he’d be pain free.  

Heavy footsteps caused him to turn back around to the group.  Gladio and Cor were rejoining them and Gladio seemed happy about something. 

Cor announced their new plans.  Noct and he were to stay with Gladio and Prompto, until they’d flushed out the bad guys.  Ignis had to work hard to hide his smile. 

Attempting to stand resulted in Ignis nearly falling sideways.  Gladio was there in a flash tugging Ignis’ arm over his shoulder.  The advisor didn’t even argue he knew he wouldn’t win. Nyx gathered Noct up in his arms and they all started for the pathway.   He could hear Cor muttering something to Nyx behind him.  Ignis could only catch bits and pieces, but it sounded as if the marshal was shocked by Ignis’ willingness to accept aid. 

Granted he never liked to burden other people, this seemed different somehow.  Gladio had been so willing to help, even from the minute they’d laid eyes on each other.  The trek back to the boat was short.  The first thing Gladio did once they boarded was lead them all to a cabin.  It was one with two bunks.

“I figured you’d rest better if you were in the same room together.” Gladio offered as he eased Ignis into the bunk.

“You assumed correctly.” Ignis replied.  However, he immediately missed the warmth from Gladio’s arm around his waist. 

“I’m gonna go scrounge up some food, I’ll be back.”  Gladio disappeared, and Nyx came in to place the prince on the free bunk.  Cor followed but stayed in the doorway. 

“I still can’t believe, of all the people you could have run into, it was Gladiolus.”  Cor breathed. 

“He chalked it up to the astrals wanting me to find Noct. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be here.”  Ignis admitted quietly.

A soft groan interrupted Cor before he could respond, Noct was waking up.  Nyx addressed him first.  “Hey sleepyhead, how ya feeling?”

The dark haired youth mumbled something unintelligible, and went quiet again.  Then a full thirty seconds later he shot straight up and nearly knocked heads with Nyx.  “What happened?!  Where’s Iggy?” He yelled.

“Whoa, calm down there buddy, Ignis is right over there.” Nyx answered as he pointed to the advisor.  “You’re on Gladio’s boat, remember Clarus’ only son.”

Noct made a high pitched noise as if in disbelief and then slowly lay back down.  “Yeah I remember, Iris’ brother.  He held me up when the box busted. He’s really tall.” Noct uttered as his eyes slipped closed once more. 

Another minute passed and round two commenced.  Noct again sprang up in the bed and looked truly panicked.  “Its Drautos and Lazarus!  They are the traitors.  Did they get away yet, can I punch Lazarus if you find him?” The prince rambled before he collapsed again. 

“Are you done?” Nyx asked kindly.  “We are still chasing them but I’ll be sure to let you have a go at Lazarus if we find him.”

“Ok.” Noct whispered.  “I’m hungry.” He added with pained look.

Ignis had to force himself to remain seated; he was in no shape to take care of his prince at the moment.  “I believe Gladio is making us something right now.” He offered instead.

“Awesome, I don’t ever want to go through that again, that sucked.”

Ignis could hear the scuffle of boots on the metal floor approaching. Gladio appeared soon after with a tray full of food.  Taking a deep breath Ignis savored the smells and felt his mouth watering.

“Okay I know it’s not super nutritious or fancy, but it’s fast and easy going down.” Gladio announced as he placed the tray down.  He’d cut up fresh fruit and made two cup o noodles. 

“Highness, can you sit up to eat?” Ignis asked.

Noct didn’t answer but rolled onto his side and reached out for the soup.  “I’m skilled, I got this.” He offered as he held out his hands for the steaming soup.  “Mmm fruit too, gods I’m so hungry.”

The prince didn’t make any more announcements and focused on eating.  He looked exhausted but Ignis suspected he looked much the same.  

“I’ve got some items on our boat for Noct.  Gladio, care to join me?” Cor asked.

“Sure thing, I’ll be back.” Gladio smiled as he left with Cor. 

Ignis really needed to figure out why he felt different around Gladio.  Was it some odd familiarity since he knew Clarus so well?  Perhaps it was something else but the advisor couldn’t put a name to it yet.  The feeling of fingers tapping his hand brought him back to reality, apparently he’d zoned out thinking about Gladio. 

Nyx was crouched down looking directly at him. “Hey gimme the empty cup.” 

After handing the styrofoam item over, Ignis was overcome with the need for sleep.  His body was done putting on a show and he needed to rest.  “I need to help Noct.” He admitted, though he wasn’t sure how since he was so tired himself.

“I got it, take care of yourself.”

Humming in agreeance Ignis toed out his own shoes and untucked his shirt.  The memories of the soft t-shirt Gladio had lent him came flooding back.  That idea sounded wonderful to his muddled brain, but he was too nervous to ask Nyx.  Instead he continued and started unbuttoning his shirt. 

Peering over at the prince revealed he was asleep again.  Nyx had only just finished removing the youth’s boots.  “What about his jacket?  Should I try and get that off?” Nyx asked with a perplexed look. 

“Does he smell?” Ignis asked coolly. 

Nyx tried to stifle his laugh but failed miserably.  “No.”  He giggled.

“Well then leave him in it.”

Nyx smiled and pulled the blanket up over the prince.  “Think he’ll be alright?  He seemed okay --.”

“I believe so, he had a traumatic experience but I think he’ll pull through.”  Ignis mused.

Cor’s voice echoed down the hall a second later and he appeared again with a travel bag.  “You’re lucky I’m a sentimental old fool, Ignis.  I grabbed an overnight bag for Noct, in case we found him and I threw some items in for you as well.  I just couldn’t wrap my head around you being gone.” 

“I’m thankful you felt that way marshal.”

Cor dropped the bag on the floor near to Ignis and smiled. “I’m so grateful you both are alright, now onto Altissia to catch Drautos.  Gladio and I plotted a course already, so unless you need Nyx or me for anything more, we’ll get going.” 

“Very good marshal. Will we be able to communicate via radio?”

“We’ve made up a new code so we can talk about basic things, but I must insist that neither you nor Noctis use the radio.  Drautos could recognize your voices.”   

“Understood.”

Nyx and Cor both said goodbye and left the cabin.  Ignis reached over and began rummaging through the bag Cor had brought.  It had essentials like a sundry kit and a change of clothes, but no sleepwear.

As if prompted by the gods themselves Gladio appeared a few minutes later.  “Hey I wasn’t sure if you might need to borrow some clothes.”  He asked leaning against the door frame. 

“Um—if you have what I wore to bed earlier that would be nice.”

Gladio smiled and nodded.  He turned away quickly and Ignis could hear him going down the hall to his cabin.  The door opened and closed and a moment later he was back, holding the worn t-shirt and oversized sweatpants.  “I’m assuming you don’t need any help this time?” He added giving the items to Ignis.

“No I should be alright.  Though would it be possible to get some water?”

“Yeah sure, be right back.”

Ignis managed to get changed without standing, and maneuvered the covers back so he could slide his long legs in.  He was looking forward to truly passing out.  Now that Noct was safe he could rest easier.  

Gladio returned with two glasses of water and set them on the end table.  “In case Noct wakes up and needs some.”

“Excellent thank you.”  Ignis offered as he reached for the glass and nursed its contents, while propping himself up on his elbow.    

“Anytime, I’ll be up on the bridge with Prompto, just use the PA there on the wall if you need either of us.”  Gladio replied pointing to the intercom. 

Reaching out to put the glass down, Gladio intercepted him and put it on the table.  “Thank you for your help, I couldn’t have done all this without you.” Ignis added as he leaned back into the bedding.  

“Don’t mention it; I’m relieved we made it in time.” Gladio offered as he crouched down to get eye level with Ignis. “He seems like a good kid, I’m glad I was able to do something for him.”  

“It’s not too late to reconsider your oath. I know it would make my job easier.”  

“I’ll think about it.” Gladio replied with a small smile. 

Ignis took a calming deep breath.  “Very well then, until tomorrow?” 

“Definitely.” Gladio agreed as he carefully reached out, tucking some of Ignis’ hair behind his ear. 

The feeling of Gladio’s calloused fingers across his scalp made Ignis’ skin tingle.  That was an unexpected move.  However, his body decided this was the exact catalyst it needed to sleep, and immediately began shutting down.  Ignis was dimly aware of a Gladio continuing to run his fingers through his hair, until sleep claimed his tired body once more.   

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading. :)


	5. Revelations of the heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The bros are on their journey to Atlissia to catch the bad guy. Things come to light.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry its a little short, this chapter, but the bit I wrote just screamed for its own section. I didn't want to muddy it with fighting. If I keep rambling I'll give it away. Anyway I hope you all enjoy and thanks so much for reading.

The blond seemed to be demanding an answer, not that Gladio was going to give one, but Prompto had begged an interesting question.  

“I wouldn’t say that.” Gladio defended.

“Ah come on, you let him sleep in your cabin when we picked him up.  You stayed with him the whole time while he was resting.  Not to mention whatever the heck was going on earlier today, when his head was resting in your lap!” Prompto enthused.  “I’d say that means you like him.”   

“I wanted to make sure he was alright. There’s nothing wrong with that!”

“Gladio, admit it.” Prompto sighed. “I mean it’s obvious he likes you too.”

“Wait, you think so?” He asked quickly. 

“Oh emm geee you’re terrible.  Go check on them again, it’s been a few hours since we left the island.  Maybe Ignis woke up and needs something, like another hug.”  The blond added with a smirk.

“I can’t believe you’re doing this to me blondie, I thought we were friends.” Gladio huffed.

“We are! I’m your wing man and I can’t stand here and watch you mess this up.  Go be the nice guy I know you are and sweep him off his feet.”

“Dork, I’ve already done that, twice.”

Rolling his eyes Prompto turned back to stare out the window.  He didn’t say anything else but Gladio could tell he had a smile on his freckled face.   The kid was enjoying his teasing, but he did make a good point.  He should go check on their guests. 

 

  

* * *

 

 

 

Rolling over, Noct tried to figure out why his bed had shrunk when everything came flooding back.  He’d been kidnapped and rescued.  Popping his eyes open revealed a small but clean cabin with two bunks.  Ignis was in the other one and in a deep sleep.

The prince had never seen his advisor in such a state.  The man did look comfy though, the t-shirt he was wearing was three sizes too big and sliding off one of his shoulders.   Even his mouth was parted slightly, he was clearly exhausted.   

Noct was in a funny place mentally, he was tired but not enough to go back to sleep.  Maybe he needed to eat more.  He remembered Gladio had fed them so there must be food somewhere.  He got up slowly and thankfully Noct had enough energy left to walk properly, albeit slowly.   A thought occurred to him that he should tell Ignis what he was up to.  The advisor would probably wake up and freak out if he wasn’t there. 

However, he would need to wake him up to do that and he felt bad even considering it.  Noct’s memory flashed back to when Ignis had literally passed out earlier that day.  His advisors face had gone slack and he looked so lost.  The prince didn’t want to interrupt his sleep but he figured he could at least try.

He shuffled over to Ignis’ bunk and gingerly sat on the edge.  “Iggy?” He called out softly.  If Ignis was lightly sleeping, though Noct doubted it, he would hear his name being spoken.  The advisor didn’t move a muscle. He tried again but a little louder.  This time Ignis moved an eyebrow ever so slightly.  “Can you hear me?  I’m gonna go get some more food so don’t worry okay.”

Noct waited to see if this would garner another response.  He was about to give up when Ignis narrowly cracked open his eyes, revealing two tired green eyes. 

“Hnnggnn.” Was all he managed to produce in regards to speech. 

“Don’t wake up the rest of the way, I’m safe and I’m getting more food okay?” He tried again. 

“Mmmhmmm.” Was the response. 

“Rest, I’ll be back.” Noct finished as he made a point to tuck the blanket around Ignis’ shoulders better.  This seemed to do the trick and he closed his eyes.  Noct waited a minute to make sure his breathing would even out, signaling he’d fallen back asleep.  It took ten seconds at most and Ignis was conked out and lightly snoring. 

Now he had to figure where to find more food.  Pulling the door open slowly he stepped out into the hallway and looked around.  Unsure of what direction to go, he turned right and hobbled along using the wall for support.   He’d opted to leave his boots behind as his socks were thick enough to cushion his feet. 

When he saw a pair of stairs leading up to a brighter area he got excited.  Fresh air sounded really good right about now.   However, the second he stepped on the bottom step a shadow appeared at the top. 

“Hey are you alright?” A deep voice asked.

Noct was waiting for his eyes to adjust but the voice sounded similar.  The accent was off but it sure sounded like Clarus.  Oh, right Gladio had been there when he’d been rescued.  “I’m good, um – I’m hungry again.” 

“Oh that’s an easy one, can you follow me?” Gladio asked. 

Noct nodded and slowly walked upstairs.  He hated having to go so slow, but his body was protesting every movement.  Clarus’ son lead the way down another hallway and finally into a larger room.  He saw a kitchen and he immediately got excited. 

“I can cook you something or you can pick what you want.”  Gladio offered.

“Are you a good cook?” Noct asked curiously. 

“Prompto doesn’t complain.”

“Um – I don’t mind if you cook, so long as you don’t add vegetables.” 

Gladio laughed and shook his head.  “No sweat off my back highness, have a seat and I’ll see what I can do.”

Thirty minutes later and Noct was chowing down on a yummy steak with fries.   This was just what he needed.  “Do you think I could sit upstairs for a little bit?”

“Sure I don’t mind, do you want to be on the bridge with Prompto or by yourself?”  

Noct thought back to other man that had been with Ignis when he was rescued.  A shock of blond hair and friendly demeanor were coming to mind, as Noct reminisced.  “Will he mind me crashing if I wanna sit on the bridge?”

“Nah, so long as you don’t mind the nonstop talking.”  Gladio added as he cleared the dirty plates away.   

Smiling Noct shook his head and stood up.  “Lead the way.”  The prince was a little nervous about trying to make a new friend, but he figured it was worth a shot.  Five minutes after Gladio introduced them, Prompto was chattering away like he’d known Noct for years. 

It was refreshing to have someone ignore his title and treat him normally.

  

 

* * *

 

 

 

Gladio watched as Noct started to open up to his friend.  Prompto was an easy guy to talk with so that helped.   It only took five minutes before he felt comfortable enough to leave them alone.   “I’m gonna go check on Ignis, page me if you need me.”

“Sure thing big guy.” Prompto replied.

Gladio continued on his way towards Ignis’ cabin.  He wasn’t sure what good it would do to check in on the man.  He was supposed to be sleeping not taking visitors.  By the time Gladio was standing in front of the cabin door, he decided to knock once and then peer in to make sure all was well. 

Of course after his knock nothing happened, Ignis was sleeping!  So Gladio slowly and quietly opened the door.  The advisor was out cold, resting comfortably under the blankets.  Well that was easy, his job was done.  However, Gladio kept standing in the doorway staring at Ignis, willing him to wake up. 

Finally after a few minutes he gave up and turned to leave.  He had almost closed the door when he heard a small noise.  It had come from inside the cabin and Gladio pushed open the door once more.  Ignis appeared to still be asleep but his face seemed different, it wasn’t calm and relaxed anymore. 

Gladio wracked his brain trying to figure out what was wrong.  Then it hit him like a ton of bricks, Ignis was having a bad dream. His only experience with nightmares was Prompto.  The kid would yell and cry it was intense.  Thankfully they’d lessened considerably since the blond first arrived.

Now as he watched Ignis quietly battle with his inner daemons, Gladio had to figure out how to wake him up.   Taking a seat along the edge of the bunk Gladio tried calling his name.   The first time didn’t elicit a response but the second time Ignis sucked in a breath and turned his head.  The advisor’s eyes were still closed but it seemed as though he was struggling to wake up.

He groaned and rolled over towards Gladio.  “I don’t want to die.” He whispered.

“Ignis, hey wake up.  You’re safe, you’re not gonna die.”

The advisor opened his eyes at Gladio’s statement and looked at him. “What happened?” 

“You’re safe and so is Noct, we are headed back to Altissia to catch the bad guys. Remember?”

He paused and blinked a few times.  “Oh, yes that’s right.” 

“Did you have a bad dream?”

“I was out at sea again, except you didn’t rescue me so I was drowning.” 

“Shit that’s scary, but you’re safe and not out at sea.” Gladio offered trying to help.  Ignis seemed so stressed by the dream and Gladio wasn’t sure how to help. Thinking back on how he’d had to learn to deal with Prompto’s nightmares, he asked another question.    “Um – do you need a hug?”

This caught Ignis’ attention right away.  “You don’t mind?” He asked with wide eyes.  “I think that would be very helpful.” 

Without answering Gladio extended his arms and pulled Ignis upright and into a hug.  His body was hot and Gladio could feel Ignis’ heart pounding as they embraced.  Taking a deep breath Gladio decided to try something a little more and began rubbing the advisor’s back. 

“Mmm –.” Ignis mumbled from where his head was buried in Gladio’s shoulder.

“Do you have bad dreams very often?”

“No thankfully, I fear the stress of my current situation has affected me negatively.” Ignis answered softly as he swung his arms around Glaido’s neck and squeezed.

“Someone trying to kill you and your best friend would do that.” Gladio surmised with a small nod. 

“You feel good.” Ignis added after a moment. 

“So do you.” He answered without thinking.  Shit, what did he just say?  He wasn’t the one that needed comforting, Ignis was. The advisor didn’t react and didn’t move away, maybe he hadn’t heard him.

“Thank you for being so kind.  I really can’t express how much it means to me.”

“No thanks needed I’m happy I could help.”  Gladio replied honestly as he held Ignis close.  The feeling of muscles and limbs shifting slightly caused Gladio to panic, was Ignis pulling away already?  Instead the advisor tipped his head back to look at Gladio directly.    He didn’t say anything but held Gladio’s gaze with light green eyes.  They betrayed his true condition, exhaustion, despite their beauty.  

Gladio was sure if he was questioned later, he wouldn’t have an answer for what happened next.  Maybe he was caught up in the moment.  Before he could stop his brain, he’d squeezed Ignis even tighter and leaned down to kiss him.  The man in his arms melted the instant their lips connected. 

The first few kisses were chaste but it didn’t take long and Gladio could feel Ignis’ tongue seeking entrance.  He parted his lips with a moan as they intensified the kiss.   Ignis’ slender but strong fingers were pulling at his hair.  A lightheaded feeling had taken root in Gladio’s head as they kissed, it was euphoric.   He never wanted this moment in time to end, it felt so good. 

A broken sigh caught Gladio’s attention next as Ignis pulled away.  “I – I feel – dizzy.” He finally conceded in between breaths.

“Me too, but I think yours might be amplified by losing blood yesterday.” Gladio quipped. 

Ignis laughed softly and leaned in again to rest his head on Gladio’s shoulder.  “Don’t let go.” He pleaded.    “I can’t – I can’t – I need you with me.” He tried. 

Gladio thought he might understand the surge of emotions Ignis was going through, as he was experiencing something on a similar level.  “I’m not going anywhere, I won’t let you go.”

“Please.” Ignis begged again.  “I need you.”

As they sat there Gladio tried to pour of all his emotions into the hug.  He wanted Ignis to know he was safe.  A small nagging thought in the back of Gladio’s head finally surged forward.  Ignis needed to rest, and this current activity was hindering that.  “Hey Ignis.” He tried gently.  “You need to get more sleep.”

Ignis instantly squeezed harder and whined.  “I don’t want to be alone.”

“I don’t want to leave you; I want to hold you while you rest.” Gladio tried to explain as they sat tangled together.  It took a minute before Ignis answered with a small nod of his head.   It was a slight struggle to get situated in the bunk.  The advisor didn’t really want to relinquish his hold, and neither did he if he admitted it. 

Finally though, after he’d managed to shed his shoes, he got them both comfortable.   Ignis was safely situated between the wall and Gladio’s bulk.  “Is this good?” He asked as Ignis glommed onto his body like a starfish.   

“You don’t have to stay after I’ve fallen asleep – I understand if you have work to do.”  Ignis admitted sheepishly.

“Shhh I’m stayin, you feel so good right now and I think we could both do with a break.”

Ignis released a deep breath; the advisor had been worried about his answer.  That pained Gladio a little, he wasn’t going anywhere.   Leaning down he kissed the top of Ignis’ head as he snuggled further into the covers and against Gladio’s body. 

This had been an unexpected development.   He knew they’d be discovered like this, Prompto would have a field day asking questions and trying to get the down low.  It was worth the good hearted ribbing; Gladio couldn’t help but feel something special when he was around Ignis.  Now, at least, he knew the advisor felt the same way. 

 


	6. To Catch a Fly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some people talk about their feelings while others prepare to skip town.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter killed me, I had so much trouble figuring out what I wanted my baddie to do! But I also want to thank my friend @ragewerthers for helping me get out of that rut. SO I hope you all enjoy the chapter. :)

"Gladio's been gone for a while do you think something happened?" Noct questioned from a cushioned seat on the bridge.  

 "Maybe they kissed." Prompto hoped as he stared out the window. 

 "Wait what?! Why do you think they kissed? What did I miss?" 

 "Ohh emm gee they've been dancing around each other for two days, and it’s been driving me nuts." 

 "Ignis doesn't do that sort of thing.  I need to know everything!" Noct exclaimed seriously. 

 "It started from the moment Gladdy spotted him floating in the water.  I've never rescued anyone before, it was really weird." Prompto added with a frown. 

 "They told me he fell overboard and was lost at sea." 

 Prompto could tell Noct was bothered by that thought.  It was clear they were really close. "Yeah well eagle eye Gladio spotted him and we changed course to pick him up.  Ignis was shivering and looked super tired, but we got him dried off and in bed right away." 

 "How was he when he woke up?"  Noct asked.

 "Worried, he told Gladio what happened after he realized who he was.  He was still insistent that he needed to get to shore to try and figure out how to rescue you.  Your friend was a man possessed." Prompto enthused with wide eyes.  

 "That sounds like Iggy, he won't quit if he's on a mission.  I was so scared he was really gone.  I almost thought I was seeing things when you all found me and Ignis was there."

 "Yeah you seemed really upset, I mean that was super freaky getting strung up like that and left alone.  I'm happy we got to you in time; I know Ignis was really concerned.  He tried to go to some safe house in Altissia but a dirty soldier almost killed him in the street!" 

 "Who? Do you know the guy’s name? We need to tell Cor." Noct breathed out in a rush. 

 "Um -- the guy isn't a threat anymore he got squished by a ladder."  Prompto replied with a shudder. 

 “What exactly do you mean squished?”

 “It’s kinda graphic, are you sure you want to hear about it?”

“Maybe not now.” Noct admitted. “Are you sure he won’t talk when he wakes up?”  

“I’m positive; the guy won’t say a thing Noct.  He’s dead.” Prompto watched Noct open his mouth to reply and then he paused.  He finally seemed to find his words after a minute or two.

“Which one of you did the deed?”

Now it was Prompto’s turn to stall.  “Uh—well none of us actually. The guy attacked Ignis first, and he couldn’t defend himself because your magic was sealed.”

“What!?  NO!” Noct exclaimed.  He was very distraught by this information.  “That’s not fair!  That asshole would’ve known Iggy couldn’t fight back.  They are a bunch of fucking jerks.  Sorry – what happened next?”

“Well Gladio and I were trailing Ignis because he said he couldn’t involve us so --.”

“You offered to help and he turned you down?” Noct asked perplexed.

“Sorta – he really was focused on finding you and felt better about going alone.  It’s okay though we didn’t believe him and followed him.” Prompto declared proudly.  “I mean technically Gladio followed him first, and then I tried to follow Gladio and yeah – um.” He trailed off not wanting to mention his shitty skills at chasing people. 

“So did you see that stupid glaive attacking Iggy?”

“We found them when the fight had already started.  Gladio had me chuck an empty beer bottle at the dude to distract him, and then Gladio tackled him!  It was awesome, the soldier kept using magic to move around but Gladio never let go.  Gladio had him in a choke hold and he passed out finally.”

“But that means he’s still alive!” Noct whined.

“Oh shit, no sorry, that’s when the escape ladder he was passed out under broke and fell on his head.  It was gross.  Trust me he’s not going to say anything ever again.”

“So how did Iggy lose blood?  Gladio kept mentioning blood loss.”

“The soldier got him with a dagger in his side.” Prompto demonstrated on his own ribs.  “Gladio surprised the guy after that and helped Ignis back to the boat once the fight was over.  He had some potions around and used them on Ignis, and then we listened to the radio for a few hours.”

“Ignis is alright though, right? I mean his wound got healed and he’s not hiding anything?” The prince pushed to make sure. 

“Ignis is good, I saw Gladio heal the wound and clean it afterwards.”

Noct looked relieved and took a deep breath.  “What did you say about the radio?”

“We figured out the people who kidnapped you might be using the radio for communication.  They sent a coded message after they left you on the island.  Ignis cracked the code and we went to rescue you.”

“I don’t ever want to go through that again, that was scary.” Noct admitted with wide blue eyes. 

“Hey don’t you need some more sleep?  I know Ignis has been pushing his limits, so I can only imagine how you feel.”

“I’m alright, but what else happened that makes you think they might kiss?” Noct asked again. 

“So far Gladio has saved Ignis’ life twice, and that shit’s like straight out of a romance novel.  Plus the big guy carries him around.”

“No! Ignis wouldn’t let anyone help him like that. ” Scoffed Noct.

 “That’s what you think.  Gladio carried him downstairs when we first found him, and then again when he passed out a second time.”

Noct’s eyes widened.  “A second time!”

“Yeah he wouldn’t stop until he found you.”

“So the kissing theory?” Noct tried with a desperate look.

“Right, so before we got to the island, Ignis was resting on the bridge with us on that bench seat.” Prompto indicated with a tilt of his head.  “Gladio was there too, reading a book, and cradling your advisors head in his lap.”

“Nah! Shut up he wouldn’t have gone for that.”

“You also missed it when Ignis called out for him after we’d found you.”

“I was awake for that!  He was about to pass out for a third fucking time apparently!” Noct shouted. 

“No it happened again.” Prompto announced triumphantly, like he was winning an argument with a toddler.  “When your friends, Nyx and Cor arrived, the angry looking one checked Ignis’ pulse, and that’s when he called out for Gladio.” 

“He probably just trusts Gladio is all, that’s still no reason for them to kiss!”

“I bet you money they are down there cuddling or something.”

“Well if you’re so sure, why don’t you go check?”

“I can’t, I’m navigating, but you can.” Prompto urged. 

“I’ll take a picture if I find anything incriminating.” Noct agreed with a wicked smile.  “Ahh shit, I just remembered my phone is dead.”

“Oh! Take mine.”

“The door has a lock right?” Noct asked.  “I mean if something um more intense is happening they would have locked the door right?”

“Gladio’s not like that, don’t worry.”

“Hmm kay, wish me luck.” Noct announced as he slipped off the chair slowly and took Prompto’s phone. 

Prompto was excited for the covert mission Noct was on and couldn’t wait to get a report back on what he’d found.  It only took about five minutes and the prince came back with a stunned look on his face.  He didn’t say anything but handed the phone over to Prompto. 

Turning it on he saw his friend and Ignis passed out and hugging each other in a bunk.  They looked relaxed and comfy. “Told ya.”

“I still can’t believe it; Ignis doesn’t let anyone in like that.  He must really like him.”  

“They look happy.” Prompto smiled. 

“I didn’t get to see any of it happen!  What the hell!” Noct yelled, though he still looked happy for his friend. 

“We can pick on them when they wake up later.  There will be plenty of time.” Prompto mused with a toothy grin. 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

Slowly waking up brought with it memories, ones of Ignis being clingy and desperate.  Astrals what had he done?  Things only went from bad to worse when he fully open his eyes, and realized why his pillow was so warm.  He was draped across Gladio’s chest like a ragdoll.   Ignis could feel his face getting flush; he had to figure out how to get up without waking Gladio. 

Lifting his head and attempting to move highlighted another problem.  Gladio had not one, but both of his tattooed arms around Ignis’ body, pinning him in place.   His right arm was around Ignis’ shoulders and his left was resting on his waist. 

Damn.

Still he kept trying to wiggle away, as if it would do any good.  Anytime Ignis moved Gladio would tighten his grip.   At one point the thought had come to him, to shove Gladio off the bunk and pretend he fell.  Aside from it being a bad idea and terribly rude, Ignis didn’t think he had enough strength anyway.    This was so embarrassing; he never needed help from anyone.

Furrowing his brow he all but collapsed back on Gladio’s chest a second time.  He was doomed to suffer through this episode.  Suddenly the arm around his shoulders moved slightly and started slowly rubbing his back.  His mind was at war with itself.  Gladio’s hand felt divine, but he was still worried what the man would think of him when he fully woke up.

A small whimpering noise left his mouth as Ignis buried his face in Gladio’s shoulder.  He was trapped and couldn’t escape the judgment that was sure to come.

“Mmm hey how’r feeling?” Gladio groggily asked a moment later. 

Ignis couldn’t answer he was so overwhelmed.  Gladio was somehow able to sneak past Ignis’ defenses and it was impossible to think straight.  The feeling of a soft kiss to his crown made Ignis almost cry.  This man apparently hadn’t noticed his breakdown yet.  It was only a matter of time before Gladio ministrations would cease, and his attention would drift elsewhere.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Gladio tried again as he rolled slightly to get a better view of Ignis. 

Strong but gentle hands were tilting his head up so they could see each other.  Now he had no choice but to come clean. “I’m sorry I’ve been acting so needy, I’m sure that isn’t what you signed up for when you kissed me last night.” Ignis admitted sadly. “This isn’t how I act normally.”

“Uh – Ignis within a thirty six hour period you’ve nearly died twice, your best friend was kidnapped, and you’re battling exhaustion.   I honestly wouldn’t describe your behavior as out of the ordinary.” 

This caused Ignis to pause, Gladio was correct he’d had a rough few days.  Willing his body to relax he took a deep breath to try and calm down.  Gladio continued rubbing his back and peppering Ignis’ forehead with feather light kisses. 

“How are you able to make me feel better with one bloody sentence?” Ignis whined.

“Dunno, but you gotta relax otherwise you’ll make yourself sick.  We’ve still have to catch the bad guys.”

“How right you are.” Ignis said softly.  However, instead of being self-conscious by his clingy behavior he was now embarrassed by his desire to run away earlier.  Would his overwrought brain ever let him rest?

“Quit thinking too hard over there handsome.” Gladio cut in a moment later. “I can tell you’re struggling.”

“Sorry, I feel slightly foolish for being so emotional.  I’d actually debated about shoving you out of the bunk so I could run away.”  Ignis admitted sheepishly.

Gladio laughed softly.  “Did you consider that I might have grabbed you as I fell?  You would have gone down with me.”

Ignis groaned.  “No, I didn’t think that far ahead during my mini panic attack.”

“Relax, your behavior doesn’t bother me Ignis.  Honestly I like being able to help, it makes me feel useful.” He finished with a smile. 

“You don’t think any less of me for begging you to stay earlier?” Ignis double checked.

“Ignis, I didn’t want to leave you alone either, remember?  I had kissed you senseless and was trying not to smother you with more kisses.”

Closing his eyes Ignis smiled at the memory.  “I’ve never been kissed like that before.” He admitted.

“Well I’m happy to do it again.”  

“I figured you would be.”

Gladio laughed.  “Do you feel well enough to get up and eat something?”

“I think I could manage.  Could I possibly squeeze in a shower beforehand?”

“You bet, use the one in my cabin, it’s bigger and the water gets nice and hot.” Gladio offered as he continued to rub Ignis’ back.

“If you keep doing that I’ll turn to mush.”

“Good.”

Ignis pushed himself up to stare at Gladio.  “You are enjoying this far too much.” 

The man in question blushed and smiled shyly.  “Is it that obvious?”

Nodding Ignis smiled. “You must release me from the confines of this bunk so I can freshen up.  Now that you’ve mentioned food I can feel my stomach grumbling already.”

“Fair enough.”

Ignis watched as Gladio careful stood and stretched, cracking an appalling amount of bones in the process.  Carefully following suit Ignis was happy to discover his dizziness had gone, and he felt alert enough to walk around unaided. 

Gladio escorted him down the hall to his cabin and showed him the bathroom.  He was instructed to follow his nose once he was done.  Ignis was looking forward to getting a nice hot shower and some good food. 

In an odd display of affection Noct tackled him in a bear hug when he eventually wandered onto the bridge an hour later.

“Thank you.” He mumbled from where his head was buried in Ignis’ chest.  “I don’t want you to get hurt again because of me.”

“It’s my duty to look out for you Noct, I will always be there for you.” Ignis answered as he squeezed back. 

“Just be careful, I can’t lose you.”  Noct whispered.  “I mean that, I was kinda wrecked when I thought you were dead.”

Smiling Ignis took a calming breath. “I will try my best highness.”   The pressure to find Noct had been lifted and Ignis felt confident they would catch Drautos. 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“Where the hell is Tredd?” Drautos yelled.  “I told him to meet us here and he’s late as usual.”

“His bag is here so he’s around somewhere.” Lazarus offered as he paced the safe house. 

“This is the last thing I need.” The captain grumbled.

“I thought everything was going well, you said they took the ransom request without any issues.”

Drautos scowled. “I think things might be going too well, Clarus didn’t question much.  They will be here soon and I need to get things ready.”

“Clarus and the king are coming here?” Lazarus asked surprised.

“Of course not, they sent their lackeys, the marshal and Ulric.”

“Do they have the money?  None of this will work if they don’t give us the money.”

Drautos didn’t even grace the man with an answer.  He merely raised an eyebrow and glared at him.  Lazarus didn’t even pick up on the look.  He was too busy wandering around the safe house rummaging through drawers and closets.

“How long do you want to wait for Tredd?”

“I don’t care about him right now.” Drautos sneered.   He was still worried about his plan, as their window of opportunity was dwindling.  He’d fabricated a fake ransom request and sent it off hours ago, after they’d docked in Altissia.  The prince wouldn’t have much time left before he would pass out from exhaustion or dehydration. 

So far Lazarus, the glaive piloting the boat, and himself were the only ones that knew his location.  He planned to keep it that way until the money was safely in his possession.   Then once the location had been sent after everyone thought the money had been dropped off, Drautos would make his escape. 

Cor and Ulric needed to hurry up, he was losing patience. The sooner he left the better.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“Do you think they are all alright on the other boat?” Nyx asked while he watched Cor navigate. 

“Probably safer than with us at the moment.” Cor offered. 

“True, I’m glad they’re okay.”

Sighing with a smile Cor nodded in agreement.  “I couldn’t accept the news about Ignis, it didn’t seem right.  The astrals were looking out for him, and it appeared they have a soft spot for Noctis as well.”

“So what’s the plan regarding Drautos?  We can’t exactly tell Clarus and the King that we found Noct, it would blow our cover.”  Nyx lamented.

“I’ve been thinking about that.  Sending coded messages works up to a point and then it gets risky.  I don’t want Drautos to figure out we rescued Noct and skip town.”

“So we still have to play along.  What do you think would happen if we refused to hand over the money to him?” 

“He’d most likely try and pull rank, with you at least.  If we push too hard he’ll only fight.” 

Nyx furrowed his brow. “So where is the money exactly?” He asked.

“The bank, I’m not stupid enough to travel with that amount. It should be ready for pickup when we arrive unless we tell them otherwise.”

“Any chance we can mark the money so it’s traceable?  We might be able to substitute some of the larger bills for smaller ones and maybe Drautos wouldn’t notice.”

Cor smiled at Nyx.  “Now you’re thinking the right way.”

“You already arranged that didn’t you?”

“Clarus and I suspected foul play when Drautos first made contact, and he fed us that shitty story about pirates.   The man is a great warrior and knows how to move soldiers around to win a battle, but he sucks mightily at using his imagination.”

“He’s gotta be suspicious though, we are going along to easily.”

“Maybe, but we won’t know for sure until we meet with him in a few hours.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

The level of Noct’s voice was rattling the dishes in the sink.  He was livid and for entirely the wrong reason.  Cor was stone faced through-out the shouting match, but it was clear he was losing patience.

“Highness, I understand you wish to see justice done, but I cannot allow you to endanger yourself further by going with us.” Cor announced gruffly.

“You didn’t see what he did to me!” Noct yelled. 

“I saw where you were imprisoned highness and I can assure you it made my blood boil.’

“I’m going!”

“NO! No you are not!” Cor shouted as he raised his voice for the first time.   I will leave Nyx behind if necessary to ensure you don’t go anywhere.”

“Don’t do that!” The prince wailed. “You’ll need all the help you can get!  Drautos has this fancy armor that is really powerful.”

“Noctis, I don’t have much time and you are not making my job easy right now.  I must go meet with Drautos.  Will you please stay on this boat?”

Noct sighed heavily and ran his fingers through his dark hair.  “What if I stay a certain distance away to be safe.”

“Absolutely not.”  Cor hissed. “I can’t believe you are making me do this highness.  I’ll go get Nyx.”

“Don’t do that!” Noct screamed.  “Fine, I’ll stay, but call us immediately if you need backup.  My magic is good and Ignis and I know how to fight.”

“I can help too.” Gladio chimed in.

Cor grumbled something and took a deep breath.  “If I see you at all this evening highness I will call this whole meeting off, is that understood?”

“Yes marshal.” Noct huffed. 

Ignis could only watch as Cor turned to leave and Noct stomped over to sit down.  “Highness this is for your own safety. You do realize that, correct?”

“Of course I know that Ignis!  It doesn’t change the fact that I want to get Drautos back for what he did to me.”

Choosing not to reply Ignis stood quietly and hoped nothing truly terrible would happen when Cor and Nyx went to meet with Drautos.  The silence was deafening at a certain point and Ignis could feel the signs of a headache forming.   Prompto had left the room as soon as the shouting started and hadn’t returned.  Gladio had his arms folded across his chest and seemed lost in thought.   The only one of them still seething was Noct, his prince was staring into the floor with a horrible scowl.

Footsteps pounding down the corridor a moment later shattered the mood. “Somebody’s out there spying on us!” Prompto frantically whispered.

“What?!” Gladio asked as he stood up alert.  “Show me!”

They all piled out of the break room and towards the outside door.  Gladio pulled Prompto back and crouched down to take a look.  The boat railing blocked his view somewhat but he continued to edge forward to see. 

Ignis couldn’t see anything yet but he was ready to call on his daggers if need be.  A muttered curse from Gladio confirmed there was a problem. 

“I see the guy, but it’s too dark to see his face.  What’s the plan?” He asked. 

“We gotta catch him.” Noct breathed out in a rush.  “What if he’s with Drautos and goes to warn him.” 

“Is there another way to get onto the dock without him seeing us?” Ignis asked. 

“This is so stupid I can warp out there and catch him in a flash.  I’m going.” Noct announced. 

The prince for once moved to fast for Ignis to grab him.  Then in a flash of blue light he was gone and over the railing to the dock below.  Cursing his charge’s impetuous nature, Ignis could tell that this was going to end badly.

Gladio had charged out the door and down the walkway to try and help.  Ignis followed with Prompto, but the man had seen Noct coming and was running away.  Now they were all running through the alleyways of Altissa chasing after the crown prince of Lucis and a traitor.  How had things turned so drastically?

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

Drautos stared at his phone with worry.  Did he dare believe what his boat captain had just told him?  The prince was alive and well.   This confirmed his gut feeling that things were not in his favor.   “Lazarus!” He shouted.  “They know!  We have to get things set up for plan B.”


	7. The Pawn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things don't go exactly as planned with trying to catch Drautos.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *WARNING: There is a minor character death in this chapter.* 
> 
> OMG this chapter fought me mightily! So sorry for taking so long with the update, I had some serious writers block with this part. I'm over that now and in the home stretch. Thanks to everyone for sticking with me so far. I hope you all have enjoyed my odd fic. :)

Chasing after someone who had the ability to warp was beyond tiring.  Unfortunately, it appeared the crown prince hadn’t taken into account the traitor he was running after could warp as well.  It was another dirty glaive.  Gladio could barely keep up with the two flashes of blue light as they pulsed down the alleyways.

He could hear Prompto and Ignis behind him, but they were still far away.  After a few twists and turns Noct finally managed to tackle the guy.  They both went down hard.  Fists were flying and the prince took a kick to the gut as the glaive got up again.

Gladio had closed the distance by this time and ran full steam into the jackass.  The dirty glaive flew across the alleyway and straight into a brick wall.  His head made a sickening crack as he made contact.  The guy actually stayed upright.  Gladio huffed in irritation and body checked him a second time.  The bones cracking this time were the guys’ ribs.  He cried out as he crumpled to the ground.  In one swift motion Gladio back handed the glaive and knocked him out.

A pained groan drew his attention next as Gladio wheeled around and rushed to Noct.  He was on his side with his eyes clenched shut.   “Hey! Do you need a potion?” Gladio asked quickly as he hovered unsure of what to do next.

Noct shook his head and rolled onto his back, “No – I – I didn’t think he’d go so fast.” he gasped out with a pained face.

The sound of pounding footsteps signaled Prompto and Ignis’ arrival.  “Highness!” Ignis called out with worry, “I warn you about these things but do you listen? NO!” he shouted clearly angry at the younger man. 

“M’fine.” Noct slurred.

Ignis kneeled in front of him and gently gripped his shoulder, “Did you break anything?”

“No – I –just – I have no energy left.” Noct breathed heavily.  “Too many warps.”

Gladio watched as Ignis gathered the prince in his arms.  Noct instantly slumped against him.

“I’ve got no choice but to call Cor and warn him.” Ignis gasped as he was still catching his breath, “I can’t let them walk into a potential trap.”    

Noct replied with concern, “Wha – but they told us not to call them.  That will make things worse.”

“I have no other options left highness.  I’m afraid I must act.”

Ignis wasn’t given the opportunity to dial the phone when a loud boom sounded close by.

“What the hell was that?” Prompto exclaimed. 

The terrified look on Ignis face spoke volumes, “That was an explosion.” he uttered. “You two stay with Noct, I must go check on Cor and Nyx.” 

“Hell no!” Gladio growled, “It’s too dangerous.  You both stay here, I’m going.”  

“Gladio don’t!  He’ll kill you.” Ignis exclaimed. 

“I’ll be careful, I promise.  You both have to make sure he doesn’t get Noct again. Please stay here it’s safer.” Gladio pleaded.

Ignis looked down at Noct and back to Gladio.  It was obvious he didn’t want Gladio to go but what else could they do?  Noct was more important.  “I’m sorry, I gotta go!” Gladio didn’t leave room for further argument as he turned and ran towards the explosion.  

Ignis’ voice frantically yelling for him was hard to ignore, but he needed to make sure Cor and Nyx were alright.  Screw trying to capture Drautos, people’s lives were at stake.  Eventually he got far enough away that he couldn’t hear Ignis anymore.  He continued on following the trail of billowing black smoke that marked the attack. 

The sight that greeted him when he arrived at the source of the explosion was horrifying.  The pile of rubble he was faced with indicated a good size building had been razed to the ground.  The air was still thick with dust and smoke.  Thankfully the hour of the evening and location of the meeting spot meant it was mostly devoid of activity. 

Unsure of what to do next Gladio started shouting Cor’s name.  Stumbling around in the debris almost blindly Gladio finally heard a voice.  It was faint but it was consistent.  Using it as a beacon Gladio climbed further into the unstable mountain of rocks and twisted metal.   He could lose his footing and die right here if he wasn’t careful. 

Burying his head in the crook of his arm, to avoid the rampant dust particles, he took a deep breath and paused.  Standing still and listening he was able to better pinpoint the location the cries.  Steering to the edge of the site he saw a shimmer of blue light. 

Having to remain slow and steady with his steps was excruciating, but he was able to get close enough to figure out what he was seeing.  It appeared to be a dome of rubble.   The shape was far too perfect looking in the surrounding chaos. 

“Gladio! Over here!” a muted voice yelled followed by a dull pounding noise.

Approaching cautiously it became evident that the odd thing was a bubble of magic.  Grabbing his phone for light, he shone it into the dome.  Cor and Nyx were inside but something wasn’t right. 

“We can’t move the beam!” Cor shouted as he pointed above their heads.

A large metal beam had landed, or would have landed on them if the magic barrier wasn’t there.  However, if the magic barrier faltered the beam would crush them instantly.  Shit, he needed to figure out how to help and fast.  It didn’t look like Nyx could hold the magic for much longer. 

Looking around for another piece of metal to act as a lever, Gladio quickly started to try and dislodge the heavy beam.  At first it didn’t budge.  Taking another deep breath Gladio pushed with all his might and the thing shifted.  It moved barely and inch which was good and bad.   Battling with the discouraging thought that it might not work Gladio continued. 

Cor’s frantic voice was getting louder and the barrier of magic was starting to show signs of failure.  Praying to the astrals for one last surge of energy Gladio put all his effort into dislodging the beam.   It didn’t move at first but then its own weight took over, and the heavy metal beam violently crashed to the side.  The barrier dispersed the split second the beam was gone. 

Sliding down into the rubble Gladio worked to catch his breath, “You – you guys ok?” he asked with worry. 

Nyx’s first response wasn’t encouraging, “I might -- throw up.” he panted weakly.

The sound of shifting debris heralded Cor’s move to action, “Whoa kid you did great take it easy, don’t move.” 

Looking up Gladio could see Cor checking Nyx for injuries.  After a minute he seemed satisfied with the glaive’s condition.  

“Why are you here?” Cor asked seriously after another minute, “I thought I gave explicit instructions not to follow us.”

“You did, but someone was spying on us.” Gladio defended, “We tried to catch them but it was too late, they’d already tipped off Drautos.” 

Cor grunted in response and shook his head, “Where is the prince?” he asked a second later with an icy glare.

“Safe, I think.”  Gladio replied with a furrowed brow, “He was fine when I left him five minutes ago.”

“We need to get back to his highness and rethink our next move.” Cor ordered as he stood up and offered a hand to Nyx. 

Gladio was bracing his weight with his arms to stand up when a small movement caught his eye.  His warning cry never left his throat.  He’d been descended upon by a heavily armored, angry man.  Nyx was still reeling from his overuse of magic and Cor could only watch as Drautos held a blade to Gladio’s neck.  

“You make one move Leonis and he dies.”

Gladio could tell from Cor’s expression that he was trying to calculate how to disarm his enemy.  Cursing his stupidity at getting caught so easily Gladio desperately wished he’d had a weapon to defend himself. 

“The minute you try and leave with him I’ll take you down Drautos.” Cor calmly replied.

“I’d like to see you try that Leonis.  Don’t forget I’m not alone.”

A flash of blue light signaled the arrival of yet another dirty fucking glaive.  Gladio was starting to get terribly sick of all the magic in use.

Cor barely had time to block the dagger aimed straight for Nyx’s heart.   The dirty glaive bounced back and went in for another attack. 

Gladio didn’t have time to watch their battle when the blade at his own throat pressed deeper.  Drautos leaned down slowly and in one swift motion he banished his blade and had wrapped both of his hands around Gladio’s neck. 

Struggling against the man’s grip was useless.  He was a normal human up against a magic wielding armored mad man.   Getting in a few well-placed kicks did nothing but expend the little energy Gladio had left and make Drautos squeeze harder.  The world finally dimmed sufficiently that Gladio realized he couldn’t fight back anymore.  

True unconsciousness never had an opportunity to manifest in Gladio’s mind.  Sounds and sights were blurry and unrecognizable as they filtered through his muddled brain.  His body hurt, that much he was aware of.  It almost felt as though someone was carrying him around like a sack of potatoes.

Time was passing strangely and Gladio didn’t understand what was happening.  Landing hard on a cold metal floor jolted his nerves.  The pain was almost enough to combat the haze he was still experiencing.  The feeling of heavy weights being wrapped around his arms and chest caused him to slump sideways. 

Suddenly a voice rang out, “That fucker is fast!”

“Did he follow you?” another voice asked.

“No, he may be Cor the immortal but he can’t warp!” 

“What the hell happened to your arm?” The second voice asked gruffly, “I thought you said you could handle the immortal.”

“It’s not a deep cut, I’m fine.”

“Go take a potion and navigate us out of the harbor now!”

Gladio managed to leave his eyes open enough to focus them on the man kneeling beside him.  It was Drautos. 

“Wha’r doing?” he slurred.

“I can’t ransom the prince anymore so you’re the next best thing.  The first born son of the king’s shield.” Drautos laughed. 

Groaning Gladio leaned further away. Great he’d fallen into a stinking trap, he truly was an idiot.  Based off the way Drautos had treated Noct there was no guarantee he’d make it out alive. 

Drautos roughly slapped him on the back when he was finished securing the chain to the floor, “Try not to feel too bad, it’s nothing personal.”

After those final words the man stood up and left the small utility room.  Gladio pulled at his restraints but there was no give.  Drautos had used heavy boat chain to tie him up.  His hands were secured behind his back so he couldn’t even see where to pick the lock that was there.    Slumping further against the wall he had no choice but to wait. 

His limbs hurt and his throat burned from being choked out by Drautos.  Unable to determine how much time was passing Gladio tried not to think of home.  He’d probably never get to see any of his family ever again.  He was doomed to die at Drautos’ hand. 

A small scraping noise broke his self-destructive train of thoughts.  Looking around the small space he noticed the door moving slowly.  Gladio steeled himself for another miserable discussion with Drautos or the other dirty glaive.  However, when the door opened enough to allow entry neither of them entered. 

Gladio couldn’t believe what he was seeing when a soaking wet Ignis Scientia snuck in.  “Ignis --.” Gladio’s voice cracked, “What are you doing here, it’s not safe.”

“Hush, I’m saving you for once.” 

“How?” Gladio asked still in shock at seeing the advisor there next to him. 

Ignis put a finger up to shush him as he went to examine the chains, “I need to pick the lock but I should have you free in a moment.” He whispered. 

“But how?” Gladio tried again still reeling from current development. 

Ignis seemed to be focusing on his work but he still answered, “Prompto and I drug the prince along with us to check on you, Cor, and Nyx.” Ignis paused briefly to jiggle the chains slightly. 

Gladio could feel the bonds loosening, whatever Ignis was doing was working. 

“We arrived in time to see you being taken away by Drautos.  Prompto hid with Noct and I chased after you.”

One chain fell away and Ignis began unwinding the other half from around Gladio’s chest.  Ignis then summoned a potion from the armiger and handed it to him.  Unable to stifle a groan at the sight of more magic he took the item and crushed the bottle.    The sore uncomfortable sensation in his throat was thankfully gone and his body didn’t ache like before. 

Taking a deep breath he pulled Ignis into a hug, “Thank you for coming for me.”  He squeezed tightly and took a moment to collect his thoughts.   “Why are you wet?” he asked puzzled. 

Ignis snorted, “I was nervous about getting thrown overboard again, so yesterday I – I rigged up something a little silly.”

“What’d you mean? Silly?” Gladio asked as he leaned back. 

“I tied the end of really long rope to one of my daggers.  The idea being, if I got knocked overboard I could throw my knife at the boat and pull myself back onboard.” 

“So you didn’t have time to sneak onboard this boat when you saw Drautos?” 

Ignis shook his head, “No, I had to dive into the harbor and hurl my dagger at a moving boat.” 

“You stabbed a boat.” Gladio breathed, “Huh.  I’m surprised the knife was able to pierce the metal skin.” Gladio pondered. 

“Oh it didn’t, I had to aim for something softer.   I believe I impaled a buoy.”

Smiling despite the current situation Gladio was starting to think they might make it out alive, “We need to hide.”  

“I have another awful idea if you’re up for trying.” Ignis offered. 

When Ignis had said his idea was awful Gladio didn’t quite believe him.  Now though, as he stood in the dark clutching a heavy shield he was starting to reconsider.  This stuff only worked in the movies, there was no way Drautos was going to take a nap on their way to Niflheim.  It wasn’t happening. 

They’d made an educated guess as to which cabin would be his and Ignis and he were both literally lying in wait.   It seemed simple enough, ambush the traitor when he came downstairs to rest.  The longer they stood waiting in the pitch black, the more Gladio figured they’d failed. 

Having Ignis with him was a welcome change, the advisor had access to weapons and shields.  Nice heavy duty things made of solid metal.  Gladio could get used to having a literal armory in your back pocket.  He had no idea how long they’d been waiting but for the first time a new noise graced their ears.  The sound of heavy footsteps signaled the arrival of someone. 

According to Ignis it appeared that only Drautos and another glaive named Lazarus were on board the ship.  Taking a deep breath Gladio prayed they were in the right cabin.  As the footsteps got closer he suddenly worried it was another trap.  What if Drautos had already discovered he’d been rescued and was ready to kill them both the second the door flung open? 

Ignis was hiding across the room and Gladio wouldn’t be able to shield him if Drautos attacked there first.  The noise of the door knob turning forced him to focus on the task at hand. 

Lifting the shield up Gladio waited, he had to do one thing, and dammit he was going to do it well.  The door opened fully and the light flipped on a second later.  The door was blocking Gladio’s view.  Having to wait another second the man closed the door and revealed his identity.  

Gladio wasn’t sure what emotion took over, fear or anger, but he charged at Drautos like his life depended upon it.   Drautos was strong, even without his suit of armor.  The traitor took the hit but didn’t go down. 

Drautos pushed back fiercely and his sword materialized a split second later.  The space was tiny and when he swung his arm back to strike his sword clanged into the ceiling.  It proved enough of a distraction for Gladio to bring the shield down on Drautos’ foot.  He howled in pain and brought his sword arm back down to try and attack again.   

“This ends now!” Drautos shouted.  Magic was starting to gather around him, he was about to don the suit of armor.

Ignis leapt out from his hiding spot and tackled the traitor at the sight of the blue magic swirling around.   Drautos stayed upright and swung around to dislodge the advisor from his back.  The surprise of a second assailant caused Drautos to lose his focus.  His magic dimmed slightly and Ignis grabbed his hair and pulled hard.  This exposed Drautos neck to Gladio. 

Dropping his shield to focus Gladio took the other item he’d been holding onto and rushed forwards.   Drautos saw him coming and thrashed out.  He tried once more to summon his armor but Gladio was quicker.  The magic inhibiting collar made a satisfying clicking noise once Gladio had it in place.  Ignis immediately released his grip and fell to the floor with a thud.

Drautos wasted no time and reached up to remove the collar, “You fucking assh--.”

His shouting was cut off abruptly when the collar violently shocked him.  His body convulsed and he dropped like a lead weight. 

“Are you hurt?!” Gladio yelled as he looked over to Ignis. 

The advisor shook his head but his eyes remained transfixed on Drautos’ unconscious body. 

More frantic footsteps above meant the other glaive, Lazarus had figured out something was wrong.  Stepping over the traitor, Gladio grabbed Ignis’ arm and heaved him up off the floor.  He was about to run out in the hallway when a gunshot rang out. 

Scurrying back away from the doorway Gladio picked the shield back up and stepped in front of Ignis.  “This thing can shield against bullets right?” he asked worriedly. 

“It should.” 

“Drautos!  What the hell is going on down there?”  Lazarus shouted.  His voice made it sound like he was slowly coming down the corridor. 

They both stayed silent and waited.  The idea of running out only to get shot at didn’t seem very appealing. 

Suddenly the glaive appeared in the doorway and fired off several rounds straight at them.  Gladio held the shield up and hoped it would be enough protection.  The shots stopped coming and Lazarus spun and ran away.  Before Gladio could stop Ignis, the advisor slipped out from behind him and was in pursuit. 

This time Ignis had summoned a gun from the armiger instead of his daggers.  Once in the hallway he fired two shots.  Lazarus shouted at the other end of the corridor, Ignis must have hit him.  Gladio watched as Ignis took aim for another shot, except when he pulled the trigger the gun jammed.   Thinking quickly he rushed out into the corridor and grabbed Ignis. 

The advisor shouted at the sudden move but didn’t fight him.  Lifting the shield just in time deflected another round of bullets from the downed glaive.  Gladio had one arm around Ignis waist as he held him tight.   Ignis was fumbling with the gun to fix the jammed bullet. 

“Astrals, this is ridiculous!” Ignis huffed as he summoned the matching gun in the set, “This is why I use knives!” 

Gladio could feel Ignis suck in a breath and when it appeared Lazarus had run out of ammo.  Ignis then leaned out from behind the shield and fired one shot.   The silence was deadening afterwards.  The only noise echoing off the metal walls was their heavy breathing.  Taking a peek around his shield Gladio could see Lazarus’s still from at the other end of the corridor. 

Focusing on allowing the stress of nearly dying to slowly seep out of his body, Gladio lowered the shield and pulled Ignis in closer.  “I’m not dreaming? You’re here and we just took down Drautos together right?” he asked shakily. 

Ignis nodded and slumped into Gladio’s hold.

“I need to go make sure we don’t crash into something and sink.” he finally offered after a minute.

“Oh yes and I can radio ahead to let everyone know we are alright.” 

It took another few minutes to actually get up off the floor.  They decided to stick together and went up to the bridge to make sure the boat wasn’t in immediate danger.   Gladio turned the boat around and plotted a course back to Altissia. 

Taking a deep breath they both descended the steps once more to handle the mess they’d left.  Ignis summoned his daggers as they stepped over Lazarus’ still form.  Gladio avoided looking at his unfocused eyes.  He wasn’t a threat anymore. 

Steeling themselves for another fight they cautiously approached Drautos’ cabin.  Thank the six he was still out cold when they looked inside.  They tied him up to the bunk just in case.  Ignis grabbed a sheet and they covered Lazarus on the way back upstairs.  There wasn’t much they could do for the glaive.  Gladio doubted moving the body would help.  His gun was still in his hand and the other held a new magazine of bullets  Right now they’d be tampering with evidence if they did anything more.

The ride back was quiet.  Ignis held his hand as they sat next to each other on the bridge.   Gladio had questions but it didn’t feel right to voice them.  They’d just been through a rather serious incident and silence seemed to be the best option at the moment.    

The lights of Atlissia came into view after a couple hours and Gladio cleared his throat.  It was time to face humanity once more, “Where should I dock this time?” he asked. 

Ignis seemed to be in a daze as he turned to face Gladio, “Oh – the same marina if you can find it.  I believe they have slips open.” 

Gladio nodded and squeezed Ignis’ hand.   He hoped they would have time to talk seriously about things.  Gladio thought he had his future planned out, but Ignis’ arrival in his life had changed everything. 


	8. Choices

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ignis and Gladio take time to think over what comes next in life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so close to the end of this thing! I think maybe one more chapter might do it. :) 
> 
> Thanks so much for sticking with me and I hope you all have liked the story so far.

The last thing Ignis expected to see when they docked was Clarus and the King Regis waiting for them. Along with what appeared to be half of the crownsguard.   Gladio’s presence by his side helped to calm his nerves.   Ignis knew the second they set foot on dry land the quiet peace they’d earned on the ride back to Altissia would be lost. 

Before exiting the bridge Gladio pulled him into a hug, “I don’t know what’s going to happen once we meet everybody.” Gladio sighed as he squeezed Ignis tightly. 

“Lots of questions I suppose.” Ignis admitted, “I did kill a man.”

“You defended yourself.”  Gladio corrected.

Mentally steeling himself for the overwhelming attention surely to come, Ignis pulled away and smiled weakly, “We should go meet everybody.” 

“Did you know the king would be here?” Gladio asked concerned.

“Not at all, I assumed he was safe in Insomnia.”  Ignis sighed, “I suppose I shouldn’t be that surprised, his son was taken hostage.”

Gladio nodded in response and walked towards the door, but he didn’t make it very far.  The looming figure of Clarus Amicitia was suddenly blocking his path. 

The king’s shield didn’t utter a word but quickly embraced his son and held him firm.  The man was upset that much was obvious.  He finally released Gladio and stepped back to look him over, “Do you need a potion or anything else?”  he asked concerned.   “Cor told me Drautos captured you and I didn’t know – I didn’t know what to expect.”  he finished with a voice full of emotion.

“I’m alright dad.” Gladio supplied with a bowed head, “Ignis was able to rescue me.”

“Ignis, you’ve done the crown proud.” Clarus offered seriously, “Regis and I were greatly distraught by Drautos’ report of your passing.  I’m relieved it wasn’t true.” The king’s shield smiled kindly as he stepped further onto the bridge, “I also owe you for watching over my boy.” he finished. 

“There’s nothing owed Lord Amiciita.” Ignis meekly supplied, “Your son has saved me from certain death twice already.  I still --.” Ignis paused and thought for a second.  That wasn’t true; Gladio had kept Lazarus from shooting him earlier.   “Sorry, three times.” he corrected.

“Three?!” Clarus exclaimed. 

Ignis could feel his face getting flushed, but thankfully it was dark enough that hopefully no one would notice, “Yes, from: drowning, stabbing, and gunfire.”

Clarus nearly choked, “What the hell happened to you all?” he asked in amazement. 

Opening his mouth to respond Ignis noticed a new visitor and quickly bowed.  King Regis had appeared next to Clarus and was stepping onto the bridge.  “I’m so happy you both are safe and sound, we were all very worried.” Regis announced. 

“We managed majesty.” Ignis offered. 

“Good work, that goes for both of you.”  Regis nodded approvingly, “There’s no need for you both to remain here, go rest.”

Clarus raised an eyebrow and watched his king as he casually paced the bridge, “I get the feeling you wish to see more.” 

“Hmmm, oh I suspect it was one hell of a fight.”

A crownsguard appeared at the door and bowed, “The boat has been cleared, and it’s safe.”

Regis turned and thanked them again for their hard work as he made his way to the stairs. Clarus squeezed Gladio’s shoulder as he passed by them to follow the king.   

The remaining guard at the door cleared his throat, “If you both would like to come with me.”

Ignis made it out the door first and Gladio was close behind him.  They had barely set foot on the dock when Cor and Monica came over.  Cor seemed angry and Ignis was slightly worried by the sight. 

“Gladio, I need you to go with Monica and give a report of what happened.” Cor ordered as he reached over and grabbed Ignis’ arm, “You, come with me.”

Turning towards Gladio with a worried look Ignis fought to keep his emotions in check.  Gladio called back over to them immediately, “It was self-defense marshal.” he spit out.

Cor sighed heavily and let go of his arm to stalk over to Gladio, “Don’t be a dolt, I know that!  But I can’t have you two confusing each other with your version of events.” he huffed.    “Be a nice civilian and go make a report, please.” Cor requested a second time as he bodily turned Gladio around and pushed him towards Monica.

Gladio nodded and gave Ignis an apologetic look. Taking a deep breath Ignis tried again to calm down.  The fear they would fire him for not protecting the prince crept into his thoughts.  Ignis wanted to believe otherwise, but Cor was acting so gruff. 

The marshal returned to his side and grabbed his upper arm once more.  Cor manhandled him through the throng of guards and straight to a waiting sedan.  Without as much as a word he bundled them both into the backseat.

Unable to remain quiet any longer Ignis blurted out the first thing on his mind, “Sir I understand that you’re upset with me for disobeying orders but --.”

“Six no!  I’m not mad at you Ignis.” Cor interjected surprised, “If it wasn’t for you and Gladio this whole mess would have ended very badly.”

Ignis was stunned, “You seem so angry.” He uttered sinking back into the seat cushion. 

Wincing Cor shook his head, “I’m sorry, having to deal with all of the security involved with a traveling king is a bit much.” Cor admitted, “If I stand around for more than five seconds the vultures swoop in to ask stupid questions.  I didn’t mean to make you think that.” 

“Ah, I see.” Ignis sighed, “I wasn’t sure at first, I did shoot another glaive so I assumed I was in trouble.”

“No, you’re not in trouble. Try and relax Ignis, everyone is safe.”

“Where are Noct and Prompto?”

“They are both in Regis’ car.  Prompto freaked out when he realized where we were taking him.  Noct wouldn’t let go of the kid, so there wasn’t a lot I could do about it.” 

“What do you mean wouldn’t let go?” Ignis asked concerned.

“The prince was using blondie as a human crutch and refused to sit in the car without him.” 

“Was the king there?”

“Yep.” Cor offered without any further explanation.  

Ignis started to worry that Noct might need him if he was still unwell from his overuse of magic, “Perhaps I should check on his highness--.”

“Nope.” Cor replied straight away, “Ignis, believe me when I say everything is alright.  No one around here thinks you did anything wrong.” he paused leaning forward slightly in the seat, “Regis was overjoyed when he found out you were alive.  You’ve done a good job, as always.”

Words were not forthcoming as Ignis sat and mulled over what Cor had said.  The past few days had been so hectic, “I’m having difficulty letting go.” he admitted.    

“That’s understandable, why don’t you focus on telling me what happened once you boarded Drautos ship.  After that you can stay in here and rest.”

Ignis drew in a long breath and nodded in agreement.  Recounting the events Ignis tried to make sure he covered everything.  So much had happened in such a short time frame.   The car they were sitting in was running thankfully, so the air was circulating and felt cool.  

When he finally finished Cor seemed satisfied.  The marshal had opted to record everything on his cell phone so Ignis wouldn’t have to write anything down.  “Everything sounds cut and dry Ignis, you shouldn’t have to revisit this episode anytime soon.” Cor offered as he began typing out messages on his phone. 

“Do you think Gladio has finished with Monica?” Ignis asked quietly.

“I’m check now, hold on.”

Ignis watched as Cor continued to tap away.   After a few moments the marshal pursed his lips, “He’s still giving his report.  Apparently he’s telling her about saving Nyx and I from getting squashed to death.” 

Ignis’ eyes went wide at the statement.  He’d seen Nyx nearly passed out sitting on a pile of rubble but wasn’t clear on what had occurred.  “Is Nyx alright?”

“Yeah, he’s resting in the car with Noct and Prompto actually.” Cor offered, “I think Regis tried to help replenish some of his magic stores.  He couldn’t even walk earlier.” 

A harmless fishing trip had turned into an absolute nightmare and they’d all survived it somehow.  Tilting his head back into the headrest Ignis closed his eyes.   The sounds of people’s muffled voices outside the car provided a white noise of sorts and he zoned out.  

 

 

* * *

 

 

Monica was silent as Gladio recounted the events of the past three days.  Hearing it back made it sound like a made up story.  Finding people lost at sea and rescuing princes from dungeons.  However, the image that was currently stuck on repeat in his head was Clarus’ face.   His father had seemed so emotional when they’d talked earlier. 

It made sense he didn’t know if Gladio was alright or not.  Still the thought of his dad going through that almost made him sick.  Gladio was trying to lead what he believed to be a quiet life.  Now an unspoken choice was looming over his head.   Return with everyone and become Noct’s shield or remain a humble fisherman.  He knew no one would ask directly and no one was going to be upset if he didn’t, but he wanted to avoid the whole situation. 

When he’d finished giving as many details as he could, Monica continued scribbling in her notebook.  After a few minutes she looked up and smiled, “I’ve got enough to make a formal report, though I may need to ask you more questions later.” 

Gladio nodded and smiled weakly.  He didn’t want to go back out and face all the soldiers and the king.  Monica had escorted him to an abandoned building for their meeting.  It had been under guard so they wouldn’t be disturbed.  Getting up from the old café chairs they’d found Gladio started to panic.  He liked things simple and the minute he walked through the door they were going to get very complicated.

“Monica – uh do you all need any help finding that island Noct was imprisoned on?” Gladio asked in hopes he could use this as an excuse to go back to his boat.   He could offer up the navigation maps he’d used.

She paused and thought for a moment, “Yes actually that would be very helpful.  We aren’t sure of the exact location.”

“I can take some soldiers there as well.” he offered quickly since she seemed interested.

“Really? You wouldn’t mind?  That would be fantastic.”

“I can go back to my boat and get it prepped and ready to go, we can be out to sea within the hour.”

Monica’s eyes lit up at the idea, “Oh perfect, I’ll go let Cor know.  I’ll gather a small crew to go with you and they can document what they find.”  She paused and tilted her head, “Are you sure you don’t mind? We can wait a day.”

Shaking his head Gladio swallowed hard, “Nah, I’d rather stay busy at a time like this.  The sooner we leave the better.”

Walking ahead of him to the door she opened it and motioned for Gladio to exit, “Go on ahead to your boat and I’ll have my men there within thirty minutes.”

“Perfect, thanks Monica.” Gladio offered as he turned and skirted the mass of activity at the dock.  Thankfully his boat was far away from the frenzy so he could sneak away.  He’d lied a little about his readiness.  His head ached from getting choked out by Drautos and he was tired, but he knew he couldn’t stay.  Pausing near the corner of the building he thought of Ignis.  That made his decision to leave even harder.  He wanted to be with Ignis, but not with all these people around, it was too overwhelming.  

Craning his neck he soon spotted the car Cor had taken Ignis to.  There was no way of knowing if he was still in there but it worth a try.  He had to see Ignis before he left.  Taking a deep breath he assertively walked up to the car and tapped on the window. 

The whirring of the window motor filled the air a second later. Tinted glass smoothly lowered to reveal Cor inside, “Gladio, are you finished giving your statement?” he asked calmly.

“Yep, I was hoping Ignis was still around.”

Cor nodded and motioned with his head to the seat beside him.  Ducking down Gladio saw Ignis.  He was asleep and had Cor’s coat covering him up.  The sight warmed his heart, Ignis needed as much rest as he could get.  The poor guy had done nothing but run himself ragged for days. 

“Want me to wake him up?”

“No!” Gladio immediately whispered, “He needs rest.” 

“What did you want to talk to him about, I can give him a message if you’d like?”

What exactly did Gladio want to talk to Ignis about?  Life, love, whether they would see each other again after all this? That wasn’t a message Gladio wanted to burden Cor with delivering so he hesitated, “Uh -- do you know if his phone has battery or not?”

Cor shrugged and then began looking in the door pocket for something, “Here write him a note if you want to tell him something personal.” he suggested, handing off a notepad and pen to him. 

Though a little old school, this would work fine.  Gladio spent the next ten minutes carefully crafting a note.  When he was done he tore the paper out and folded it up, “Make sure he takes it easy, I don’t want him stressing over this.”

A small look of confusion crossed Cor’s features, “ _This_ being your note, or the whole situation of Noctis’ kidnapping?”

Gladio didn’t answer; he wasn’t sure at this point.  “You’ll make sure right?” Gladio pressed a second time.

“Of course, he’s in good hands.” Cor replied as he took the note.  “I’ll see you again soon I hope.”

“Sure!” Gladio announced but he didn’t really know when that would be.  Taking one last look at Ignis he spun around and jogged back to his boat.  He had something to focus on right now and that was making sure Drautos went down for Noct’s capture.  Helping the crown gather evidence was a task he could handle.   It would also give him time to think more about what he wanted to do.

Pulling out his phone he texted Prompto.  He’d not heard from the kid and wanted to make sure he was still with Noct.  In a rather blunt message he told Prompto he was going to leave him in Noct’s care for the moment as he had to take some people back to the island. 

The reply was nearly immediate.  Prompto asked if he was alright and if he needed any help.  Gladio told him no and made sure he felt safe staying with Noct.  He wasn’t going to leave his friend if he wasn’t comfortable.  A minute later a wordy message came through.  He was fine and felt safe, though he was terribly freaked out being in the company of the king.  Gladio chuckled at that.  Of course bubbly nervous Prompto would have to sit with the king, the man was Noct’s father after all! 

The sound of voices broke his thought and he looked up to see a group of glaives approaching the dock.  He would be busy now, this was good.  He hoped they wouldn’t ask him too many questions.  He liked it quiet.    He had a lot to think about and being alone on the bridge was the perfect place to sit and ponder.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

A small rhythmic movement gently lulled Ignis out of sleep.   He went to move his arm to rub his eyes but quickly realized he couldn’t.  He was stuck.  The remaining dredges of sleep left him instantly as he snapped his eyes open.  He was in a moving car and restrained?  Leaning forward quickly he discovered he couldn’t go very far. 

“Hey, relax Ignis it’s just the seatbelt.” Cor’s voice offered from the seat next to him, “Didn’t want you falling out of your seat.” He finished with a teasing smile.  

Peering down Ignis realized why he felt so restricted.  Cor’s jacket was draped across his chest and the seatbelt was over the top.  Wiggling slightly he managed to free his arms and undo the belt, “I can assure you I’ve never fallen out of a seat.”

“If you say so.” Cor mused. 

Ignis slowly stretched his arms and yawned.  He had no idea how long he’d been asleep but he was sure he’d missed something important.  “Do you need your jacket back?” he asked earnestly.

Cor shook his head and waved him off, “I’m fine.”

The decision to stay underneath the warm item of clothing was an easy one.   Suddenly realizing he didn’t know where Gladio was Ignis turned towards Cor to check, “Where’s Gladio?” he asked concerned.

“He is helping out by taking some glaives over to the island Noct was stuck on to gather evidence.” Cor supplied.

Ignis felt like he’d taken a punch to the gut.  He hadn’t been able to say goodbye and now Gladio was back on his boat. “Oh.” was all he could muster in response. 

“He left you a note though.” Cor smiled as he dug a piece of paper out of his front shirt pocket. 

Ignis accepted the paper and settled back into the seat to read the contents.  He was nervous about what it might say.  Gladio could tell him he never wanted to see him again.  Sighing heavily Ignis unfolded the paper.  Gladio’s surprisingly neat handwriting filled the top half of the sheet. 

_Ignis,_

_You were asleep when I came to check.  You need to rest so I decided to write this note instead of waking you up.   I offered to take some soldiers over to the island where we found Noct.  When I’m done with that I’ll call you._

_I haven’t felt like this around another person in a long time.  You make me really happy and I hope you want to continue what we started.  I understand if you don’t want to, with your duty to the crown and all it could be really hard._

_Honestly, seeing my dad again brought back some tough memories.  I’m working on dealing with that right now and I don’t want to burden you with it.  That’s part of the reason I offered to take people over to the island.  If I’d stuck around I don’t think I would have been able to handle the questions about what I want to do next with my life._

_I don’t want to drag you down into my confusing mess right now.  Give me some time to figure my shit out and I promise if you want to see me again I’ll be there._

_I hope this makes sense!  I really like you and I don’t want to screw this up!  We’ll talk soon, but for now try and relax and get some actual sleep!!_

_-Gladiolus_

Staring at the sheet Ignis was struggling to keep his composure.  The note was both good and bad.  Gladio clearly stated he liked him, twice.  However, he also mentioned having to work through his thoughts.  Ignis didn’t know how long that would take.  Gladio could go away and fish for another year before he had clarity. 

Cor must have picked up on his distress, “You alright Ignis?” he asked softly.

Without a second thought Ignis thrust the letter over to Cor, “Sorry, I need another opinion and you trained with him.  What do you think he’s going to do?”

The marshal seemed somewhat surprised by the gesture, “You sure it’s alright for me to read this?”

Ignis nodded, “I trust you.  I don’t know what to do and I don’t really have anyone else to get advice from.” He quietly offered.

Cor reached out and squeezed Ignis’ knee.  He seemed slightly overwhelmed by the comment but smiled none the less. “I appreciate the sentiment Ignis that means a lot.”

Waiting patiently as Cor read the letter Ignis couldn’t help but fear the worst.   

After a few minutes Cor hummed thoughtfully and looked up, “Will you wait for him?”

“Yes.” he offered almost immediately.  Ignis knew that much.  He’d felt a connection with Gladio the moment they’d met.  Granted he’d been half dead and in desperate need of assistance, but still there was a spark of something there.  

“I can tell from the way he treats you that this is something special to him.  I think you may have to be patient to see how it unfolds.”

“How long though? How long do you think he could take to find out the meaning of life?” Ignis groaned.

Cor huffed, “That I’m afraid I can’t answer.  You may have to ask him that.”

“What if he still doesn’t know?”

“Then you’ll have to decide whether to wait or move on.”

The idea of losing an opportunity to be with Gladio really hurt.  He didn’t want to give up and walk away but he also didn’t think he could handle waiting an indeterminate amount of time.  “He said he’d call me.  Should I wait or call first?”

“Now you are getting into uncharted territory Ignis.  The last time I went on a date was two years ago. I’m awful with that shit.” Cor offered with an apologetic look. 

Briefly caught off guard by the admission Ignis wondered who he’d gone out on a date with.  “Would it hurt to call first?”

“No, I wouldn’t call more than a couple times though.  That much I know.”

Ignis couldn’t help but smile at that comment.  Cor clearly knew more than he was letting on, “Very well, I’ll give it a few days and try calling.”

“Gladio is a good kid.  I don’t think he’d say all this.” Cor held up the letter to emphasize his point, “Without meaning it.”

Ignis nodded in agreement and turned to look out the window.  The sun was coming up and he realized he had no idea what day it was.  Time had been a blur since he was pushed overboard.  It appeared he was going to be at the mercy of time once more while he waited to hear from Gladio. 


	9. Moving On

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gladio has to decide what to do with his life while everyone else adjusts to being back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again for sticking with me. I had a lot of fun writing this fic and I hope you all liked it too. :)

Prompto stood nervously waiting in the hallway outside of the training room at the citadel.  He’d been in insomnia for barely four days and he still wasn’t sure he’d made the right choice.  He was technically homeless, unemployed, and broke.  Gladio’s phone still had no reception so he couldn’t call his friend for advice.

Ignis had thankfully recognized his housing dilemma right away once they’d returned.   He’d offered up his spare room without hesitation.  The man was also an amazing cook so he wasn’t lacking for food at least.  Noct was on strict orders from the doctor to rest and relax so Prompto was only able to see him for a few hours a day. 

Ignis had been given the same orders but he seemed to be ignoring them.  Prompto tried to help out when he could.  He did the dishes and managed to wrangle the laundry basket away from Ignis at least twice already. 

Now as he stood awaiting his fate he could feel his hands getting clammy.  The door to Cor’s office popped open suddenly and a glaive peered out, “You can come in now.”

His shoes squeaked as he spun around to follow the instruction.  Upon entering the office he was told to have a seat in the chair opposite Cor.  Six he was so freaked out by all of this.  Cor was reclining in his seat and there were two other soldiers in the room with him. 

“Prompto, are you sure this is what you want?” Cor asked finally.

He faltered, he wasn’t sure, but he knew he didn’t want to spend the rest of his life on a fishing boat.  “I’m not really sure sir; I don’t have many options in life.”

“Not true, you could work at a restaurant, or be an office clerk.  You’ve signed up to be a soldier.  This is very different.” Cor replied.

“I know, but I want to do something good for people.  I felt useful and I want to feel like that again.”

“Fair enough.  This isn’t easy training though I hope you understand.”

Prompto nodded vigorously, “Yeah, I get that.” 

“Well then, I’m happy to report your background check came back clean.” Cor paused and lifted an eyebrow, “Mostly.”  Prompto went to try and explain himself but Cor raised his hand to stop him, “It’s alright, you’ve had a rough time.  I get _that_.” He added smiling. 

“What’s next then?”

“You get to choose your trainer.” Cor announced as he motioned for the two glaives present to step forward.

Prompto was so confused the two soldiers standing before him were both tough looking.  He had no clue who to pick, “Sir uh – which one is better for me?” he asked looking back to Cor.

The marshal grinned and pointed to the one on the left, “They are both good trainers but I think you’ll fit in well with Pelna.”  

The soldier in question crossed the distance between them and reached out his hand with a smile, “Glad you’ll be joining the ranks of the good guys.”

Cor dismissed them all and Prompto followed Pelna back towards the locker room to get his training gear.  He was scared and excited all at the same time.  He wished he could tell Gladio what he was doing.  He hoped his friend would be proud of his decision. 

Pelna showed Prompto around the facilities and gave him some tips on what to expect when training started the following week.  The glaive was nice and seemed to sense his anxiety over the situation.  He told Prompto he’d do just fine and not to worry. 

Each minute that passed eased his frayed nerves.  Finally when the tour was over and his locker had been assigned he left to go back to Ignis’ apartment.   The advisor didn’t live very far away so he could walk there. 

When he arrived the mood was decidedly different.  Ignis had been told he wasn’t allowed to return to work until he’d been cleared by a doctor.  This only meant he was doing his work from home instead, despite several threatening visits from Clarus ordering him to stop. 

Prompto looked around for Ignis and found him sitting at the kitchen table.  He was hunched over the table with his head resting on his forearms.  Suddenly worried something bad had happened he rushed over, “Ignis are you alright? Do you feel okay?” he asked.

Ignis didn’t lift his head, “No.” he mumbled.

The blond wanted to help but he didn’t know if Ignis wanted to talk about what was going on, “Uh – I’m here if you need to talk or --.” He paused and thought for a moment. “Do you  need me to call the doctor?”

“I’m not ill.” Ignis offered as he slowly sat up, “Thank you though.”

“But something happened did it?” The idea that maybe Drautos had escaped crossed his mind, “Is Drautos still in custody?”

“Hmmm, oh yes.  The crown has plenty of evidence to put him away for life.  You did a wonderful job rigging that collar.  It was instrumental in taking him down.”

Pride swelled in Prompto’s chest at the praise, but Ignis still look any better.   “If they have enough evidence does that mean Gladio is back?”

Ignis didn’t answer verbally.  He simply stared ahead blankly and nodded slowly. 

“But I tried calling him earlier and his phone still went to voicemail.” Prompto stated confusedly, “Why would he do that if he was back?”

“Perhaps he wishes to be left alone.”

“No, he’s not like that.  Are you sure he’s okay?  He could be injured and we don’t kn--.”

“No Prompto, he’s not injured.” Ignis interrupted, “I’ve already talked with the glaives that he accompanied.  They said he was fine when they returned to port two days ago.”

“I don’t understand, if he’s been back for two days why the hell hasn’t he called any of us?!” Prompto asked in disbelief.

“I wish I knew.”  Ignis lamented. 

This was all wrong; this was not how his friend acted.  He was a good guy.  Gladio didn’t say one thing and then do another.  “Did you call maybe he’ll pick up if he sees its you.”

Ignis finally looked at him, “I already called and texted yesterday morning.  He doesn’t want to talk me obviously.”

Prompto couldn’t believe what he was hearing.  Gladio and Ignis had hit it off so well.  The blond spent the rest of the evening attempting to cheer Ignis up.  It didn’t exactly work but it made the time pass.  Tomorrow Prompto was going to try and figure out what was going on.  They deserved to know.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“I don’t understand why you are being like this Gladdy!” Iris shouted, “You are clearly miserable.” 

“What am I supposed to do about it?” Gladio huffed, “I’m not leaving you like dad did.” 

“I’m not a little kid anymore; I don’t need you to worry about me.  You are not allowed to use me as an excuse for doing the wrong thing.” 

Gladio scrunched up his nose in disgust, “I’m not using you as an excuse!” he growled.

“Don’t give me that crap. Ever since you got back two days ago you’ve been a giant stick in the mud!” Iris yelled as she stormed around their aunt’s kitchen, “I don’t know exactly what happened but if you don’t fix it I’m going to get dad involved.”

“NO!  That’s not fair.  Don’t turn dad into some savior when he’s not been there for us.  That’s a low blow Iris.”

“Then figure your shit out!”

“Language!” Gladio hissed, “See this is the stuff that happens when I’m not here.”

“No its not!  I told you to stop making me part of your excuse.” 

“I’m not doing that!” Gladio bellowed.  Six he was fucking sick of this.  Why couldn’t this be easy?  “I’m not leaving you alone.” he finished with a fire in his eyes.

“I’ll move into the city with you then.  I won’t be alone and you can stop using me as an ex--.”

“Iris --.” Gladio threatened, “Don’t.”

“I don’t want to be around you if you’re going to be like this.” Iris added with tears in her eyes, “You said you’d look after us and this is not how you do it.” Sniffling she turned and ran from the room. 

His head was throbbing with a migraine now and Gladio still didn’t know what to do.  He couldn’t abandon his sister that was not an option.  He wasn’t going to uproot her life just so he could go do as he pleased.  The air in the room suddenly felt oppressive, he needed to get out of the house.

Storming out into the yard he took off down one of the well-worn paths that led to the sea.  His head was awash with thoughts of Ignis and what his sister had just said to him.  

Their aunt lived in a well-appointed cottage near the sea just outside of Altissia.  The place was peaceful and quiet and work wasn’t a distraction when he was there with Iris.   Or at least it used to be that way.  Now he wasn’t sure what his future held if he stayed.  Iris seemed pretty upset and he didn’t want to see what his sister would do if pushed any further.  Time was running out he couldn’t keep avoiding Ignis.  He owed him an answer.   

Gladio stayed out for nearly an hour.  The walk helped his headache but did nothing for the conflict in his mind.  Deciding to turn back he trudged up the hill back to the house.  When he was still a good distance away he spotted a car in the driveway.  It was an official crown vehicle. 

Panic took over as he ran up to the house.  Had something happened?  Taking the front steps two and a time he threw the door open.  Iris was there talking to their surprise guests, his father and Prompto. They both looked like somebody had died.  Shit this wasn’t good.  

Without waiting for an explanation he looked at his friend, “Are Ignis and Noct alright?” he asked in between breaths.

Prompto nodded solemnly but didn’t say anything. 

“Are you alright?” he asked remembering that Prompto wasn’t always forthcoming with news like that.

The blond nodded again. 

“Thank the six.” he muttered. 

Clarus spoke next, “Son, I think we need to talk.”

“Not you too!” He exclaimed, “Iris already lit into me dad, I don’t have the patience to hear any more.” 

“Prompto, Iris, do you think I could have a moment alone with Gladio.” 

Gladio watched them go through to the next room.  He couldn’t believe he was going to have to put up with getting yelled at twice in one day. 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

Ignis couldn’t figure out why Prompto was acting so strange.  His training was starting soon so it must have been nerves.  Maybe Prompto coming home the other night and finding him in such a state of distress over Gladio had affected him.   Ignis still didn’t have any news and he was starting to think he never would. 

Gladio had gone off to think about his life and it seemed it didn’t include Ignis.  That idea was depressing but he couldn’t force another person to like him.  The pain of it all was a dull ache; Ignis hoped it would go away eventually.  Though he wasn’t sure it would. 

Resigned to reviewing reports at his small kitchen table Ignis was surprised when a notification dinged on his phone.  He’d still been unable to go to work officially; the doctor had refused to clear him.  Ignis suspected the king was to blame for this.   He knew they all wanted him to rest, but didn’t they understand? Work allowed his brain a reprieve from thinking about Gladio. 

Tapping his phone awake he saw that it was a calendar invite, for training of all things.  The description was useless as he opened the message.   The appointment was set for that very afternoon.  Maybe they wanted to have him take a physical, so he could prove he was healthy enough to go back to work.   Finally maybe he could get back to normal!  

Having to wait the three hours for his appointment was nearly impossible.  Deciding to go early he grabbed his gym bag and left for the citadel.   The short walk there did little to clear his head.  Taking a deep breath once he reached the entrance to the citadel Ignis began calmly walking to the training room.  He needed to at least appear normal. 

As he approached the training hall he was sure he could hear people talking.  No it that wasn’t it, he could hear laughter. Worrying slightly he crept up to the door.  If he was going to be evaluated were people laughing at him before he’d even arrived?   Stopping just outside the door he waited and listened.  The laughter had died down and had been replaced by the low muffle of indistinguishable voices.   

The unique bubbly laugh of Prompto reached his ears suddenly.  He was very confused as to what this training appointment entailed.  He was about to push the door open when another deeper voice rang out.  It was Gladio he was sure of it! 

Ignis froze in place waiting to hear his voice once more.  He needed to make sure it was real.  Sure enough a moment later Gladio’s comforting voice filtered out into the hallway.  The gym bag he’d been holding slipped from his shaking hands.  Still stuck in place Ignis tried to force his body to move.  The fear that Gladio might not be there to see him crippled his resolve. 

After what felt like an eternity he took a step forward and gently pushed the door open. 

The room had a few other occupants as he looked around.  Noct was sitting on a pile of mats along the wall with Prompto next to him.  A younger girl Ignis didn’t recognize was sitting next to Prompto.  The three of them were cheering on Gladio, who at the moment had his back to Ignis.

Ignis didn’t dare to believe what he was seeing was real.  Gladio was wearing a crownsguard uniform and wielding a broadsword.   It appeared Noct was giving him instructions on how to summon it from the armiger.

If the prince had given Gladio access to the armiger that could only mean one thing. 

He was thoroughly distracted watching Gladio and he didn’t realize he’d been spotted.   Prompto’s voice announced his entrance a second later, “Hey big guy, Ignis is here.”

Gladio spun around quickly and looked at him with wide eyes.  He then looked back to the sword he was holding, “Noct!  Make it go away!” he demanded. 

“Just let go.” Noct urged.

Turning back to Ignis he took a few steps towards him and then paused to look at the sword again.  With an unpracticed move of his arm he finally released the weapon and it vanished into the armiger.  Running the remaining distance he stopped short of Ignis, “I’m so sorry I didn’t call.” He blurted.

Ignis went to respond but Gladio kept on talking.

“I know you’re probably really upset about that and I don’t want mess this up a second time.  Please can we start again?” He asked hopeful. 

Unable to come up with anything poignant to say Ignis simply nodded and smiled.  Gladio grinned like he’d just won the lottery.  Without hesitation he crossed the remaining three feet between them and engulfed Ignis in a hug. 

Any remaining worry or unease faded instantly when Gladio’s arms were around him.  This felt so good and Ignis never wanted to be deprived of this sensation again.  “I missed you.” He whispered in the small space between them. 

“Even though we only apart for a week I was a wreck without you around, just ask my sister.”

Ignis realized the younger girl in their company must be Iris. He’d not seen her in many years, but as he peered over Gladio’s shoulder he could clearly see the resemblance.  “Are you staying?” he asked softly. 

“Yes, I’m going to be Noct’s shield so I’m not going anywhere.” Gladio offered with shy smile.

“Are you technically already a member of the crownsguard?”

Gladio nodded, “Cor got me prepared for this last year in case I decided to take the oath.  I’m ready and willing.”

Ignis leaned in to hug Gladio tighter if that was even possible.  He was so happy he could hardly handle the surge of emotions that he was experiencing.

“I’m here to make your job easier remember.” Gladio supplied as he gazed down with vibrant amber eyes.

Their friends it appeared could no longer stay silent. A steady but clear chant was starting to grow from the side of the room.  Looking over Ignis could see Prompto and Iris cheering for a kiss.  Noct was fake retching.  Two out of three was enough for Ignis to act, “I believe they want us to kiss.”

Gladio raised his eyebrow and smirked, “Well I don’t think we should disappoint them.” 

Ignis stood on his tip toes as he tilted his head up towards Gladio’s handsome face.  The future shield wrapped his arms around his waist and hoisted Ignis up the remaining distance.  The moment their lips connected Ignis forgot where he was.   The heat from Gladio’s body seemed to be the only thing anchoring him to this world. 

Gladio didn’t put him down until he was lightheaded and weak in the knees, “Wanna meet my sister?”  he asked with a grin.

“Of course.” Ignis agreed as he worked to catch his breath. 

When they turned to walk back over Ignis clutched Gladio’s arm for support.  He was overwhelmed, but in a good way.  Gladio barely stopped walking as he spun around and swept Ignis off his feet, “I missed doing this too.”   

Ignis could feel his face turning red but he didn’t care he was happy.  Once they reached the mats in the corner Gladio deposited Ignis next to Noct.  The prince leaned over and hugged his advisor, “I’m really happy everything worked out.  I don’t like to see you sad.”

“I appreciate the sentiment highness.   Though I am sorry your fishing trip got ruined by this whole mess.”

“It’s okay we can plan another one right?  I mean I’ve got my own personal shield now.” Noct enthused. 

“Your personal shield also owns a fishing boat with lots of room for big fish.” Gladio added with a wink.

Noct’s eyes lit up as he turned to Ignis with a huge smile, “Okay we are planning another trip as soon as the doctor clears us both.” 

Ignis groaned and flopped back into the mats.  Now he wished he could never go back to work.  Anything he could do to avoid another fishing trip would be acceptable.

“Hey Ignis, it’s alright I’ll be there and so will Prompto.”  Gladio announced, “Come on it will be fun.”

Feigning his dismay Ignis waved his arms around dramatically.  He really didn’t mind, Gladio had a good point they would be together this time.  Turning his head Ignis locked eyes with Gladio.  Reaching out they took each other hands and squeezed.  The sounds of excited chatter planning the trip faded away as Ignis focused on Gladio. 

He was so relieved that Gladio had decided to become Noct’s shield. They all made such a good team and he was excited for the adventures they would go on together.

 

# THE END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If there is interest I'm debating about writing a epilogue or one shot of a date between them.


	10. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things worked out and Noct finally got to go fishing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just gonna sneak this in here and run away. o-o 
> 
> Sorry it took me forever to come up with the way I wanted this little chapter to go. Anywho just more fluff. :)

The feeling of euphoria at having caught the biggest fish ever was quickly starting to fade as Noct approached Ignis.   His advisor appeared to be asleep and Noct was getting concerned he was unwell.  Ignis was sprawled out under the shade in a deck chair and wasn’t responding to his name being called.

Kneeling beside his friend Noct shook Ignis’ shoulder a few times.  Finally he groaned and pried an eye open.  “Are we home yet?” he asked blearily.

“Wha? No uh we just started this fishing trip.” Noct responded with confusion.  “Hey that’s not the point are you alright?” he asked worriedly.

Ignis hummed and rolled his head to better look at Noct.  “Why wouldn’t I be?  We are on vacation remember?” 

“Yeah I know, but like you were sleeping in the middle of the day.  You never do that.” Noct offered as he wrung his hands. “I mean the doctor said you were good right?  You’d tell us if you weren’t feeling well wouldn’t you?”

Ignis furrowed his brow and took a deep breath.  “Noct, I’m merely relaxing.  There is nothing to fear.” 

Before Noct had a chance to question his advisor further Gladio rounded the corner with his catch.  “Iggy babe, check it out.  Look at what the prince just caught!” He enthused holding up the massive fish.

“That will make a wonderful dinner tonight.” Ignis smiled as he turned over slightly.

“I’m gonna go put it in the hold so it’ll stay fresh.  Noct do you wanna try for some more?” Gladio asked as he turned to leave.

“Whoa, wait.  This is too much.” Noct blurted.  “Ignis might be sick.” He added quickly.

That statement stopped Gladio in his tracks. “Uh – you sure about that.”

“Look at him!  He was asleep!  In the middle of the day!” Noct exclaimed.  “I have never seen that.”

Ignis snorted and reached out to shove Noct in the shoulder.  “Would you please believe me that I am in fact fine.” Raising his hand to silence Noct before he could interject Ignis tried again. “You’ve got a proper shield now, which means I can take small breaks here and there.”

Noct frowned at the idea but realized Ignis had a point.  Ever since Gladio had been appointed his new shield a few months ago things had changed.   Ignis appeared less haggard looking and had been able to offload some of his duties to Gladio.  “You’d tell me otherwise, right?”

“Of course highness, now go enjoy yourself and fish.”

Noct had no choice but to assume things were fine when he saw Gladio give Ignis a dopey love sick grin.  They had already moved in together so Gladio would know if Ignis was sick or not.  Huffing he stood up and glanced once more at his advisor.  Ignis laughed at him and readjusted his pillow. 

Prompto’s voice rang out a second later.  “Noct your other line is twitching, you better come check it!” 

Ignis extended his leg and lightly shoved Noct away.  “Go, let me enjoy the sea air.  If you remember the last time I was on a boat I didn’t get to relax.”

Memories of what had happened made Noct feel slightly emotional.  Without warning he plopped down on the lounger to give Ignis a hug.  His friend immediately hugged him back and they stayed like that for a moment.

The sound of pounding footsteps caused Noct to pull away.  Prompto came into view and was very excited.  “Dude, your line!  I think it’s another big one.” He was waving frantically in the direction of his poles.  Noct yelped when he felt a pinch to his arm. 

Ignis was smiling at him. “Go, I’m going to take another nap.”

Feeling better about the situation Noct got up and followed Prompto.  This was turning out to be the best fishing trip he’d ever been on. 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

Ignis became aware of his body being gently lifted.  Opening his eyes revealed Gladio carefully picking him up from the deck chair.  “Wha’s go’n on?” he mumbled, not fully coherent.

“It’s starting to rain so I’m moving you inside.  Relax I gotcha.” Gladio hummed as he continued on with his task. 

Opting to wrap his arms around Gladio’s neck Ignis tried to focus on waking up.  Spending the better part of the afternoon napping had been a nice treat.  Originally opposed to going out on yet another fishing trip, Ignis had been pleasantly surprised with how this one was going.   No back stabbing traitors were on board this time so they were all safe.     

Drautos was currently in prison with no chance of parole with several other glaives that had turned coat.  The trial had been fast and Ignis had easily given his testimony when the time came.   Describing the events that had occurred had been exhausting but necessary. 

Gladio had been there to support him through the whole process.  Ignis was grateful their relationship was growing.  It’d been three months since they’d all returned.  The first week Gladio had fretted that he’d caused more damage than good by waiting too long to reach out. 

Ignis had assured him that everything was alright.  He understood Gladio’s reasoning.  The man didn’t want to tear his already broken family apart even more than it was already.  In the end it had taken a visit from Clarus to reassure his son that he wasn’t abandoning Iris.  She’d already been secretly planning to visit Insomnia to try and get an apartment.  When Ignis had a chance to talk with the younger girl it became evident that Gladio’s behavior had taken a turn for the worse.  He was clearly unhappy and conflicted about how to solve the problem. 

In the end Prompto had been the first to take action.  The blond had admitted that seeing him so sad was too much to handle.  He’d left and immediately gone to talk to Clarus.  The two of them had stormed the cottage in Altissa to tell Gladio what was going on. 

Ignis didn’t think he would ever forget the feeling of relief that had flooded his senses when he’d opened the training room door that day.  Seeing Gladio standing there with intentions to stay made his heart soar.    They’d only technically been apart for five days but it had felt like a lifetime.  

Everything after that fell into place naturally.  Iris moved into the city and opted to live with her father for a while.  They were testing things out to see how it would work.  Prompto had been doing great in crownsguard training and had qualified for free housing on the grounds.  Though Ignis wasn’t sure how much time he actually spent there since he and Noct were always together. 

The prince had recovered well and was enjoying having a new friend around.  Ignis hadn’t seen him smile this much in a long time. It had taken a little convincing on Noct’s part to get the king to agree to another trip for the four of them.  Eventually Regis signed off and they had all selected a date. 

The memory of the fish Noct had already caught came back to Ignis.  He was already forming a plan on how to cook it later.

Gladio’s voice broke his train of thought after a moment. “Hey whatcha thinking about?”

“Oh nothing in particular.”  Ignis replied, “I’m merely enjoying the ride and looking forward to dinner.”

Gladio snorted as he placed Ignis on the bench seat in the bridge.  “Since you slept all afternoon do you think you’ll be able to stay up with me tonight while Noct does some night fishing?”

“That sounds wonderful.”

Tapping his chin Gladio raised an eyebrow. “Which part, the night fishing or hanging out with me?”

Ignis rolled his eyes and hit Gladio in the arm.  “You have to ask?” he shot back.

“I have to check ya know!”

“Astrals!” Ignis huffed as he grabbed Gladio’s shirt and tugged him down for a kiss.  They didn’t stop until Noct suddenly appeared and shouted at them.   

“You two are so gross; will you get a room or something?”

“Oh princess is right, we do have a room we could use.” Gladio supplied with wide eyes.

“NO! I didn’t mean like right now! Stop I was kidding!” He wailed. 

The shouting had apparently caught Prompto’s attention and he was now standing in the door way.  “What’d I miss?”

“They were making out, it was awful.” Noct groaned. 

Prompto beamed at them and took a step forward to fist bump Gladio.

“You are not helping.” Noct droned as he glared at Prompto. 

“Aww come on man they’re happy.  Let em be, why don’t you help me put some of the stuff away on deck until the storm rolls over.”

Noct stared at Gladio as he followed Prompto out.  “No more funny business.” He ordered as he left.

“Mnnn we have to follow Noct’s orders.” Ignis sighed.

“Whaaa?” Gladio exclaimed, “You don’t want to kiss anymore?”

“Of course I do. We just can’t have fun while doing it, we must be very serious.” He announced with blank stare.  Ignis could tell that Gladio was trying not to laugh as he inched closer, and that is how they passed the rest of the evening.  Good food, good company, and much to Noct’s dismay very serious kissing.   

 

**Author's Note:**

> Check me out on tumblr if you want. Just mostly FFXV stuff with some random dribbles. [BGN846 Blog](https://bgn846.tumblr.com/)
> 
> or Twitter [ BGN846 Twitter](https://twitter.com/BGN846?lang=en)
> 
> Please don't copy or plagiarize my work. Thanks!


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